Ending Hunger in America, 2014 Hunger Report Full Report | Page 149

CHAPTER 4
Oregon: FEASTING in Rural Food Deserts
When food choices are limited, everyone in a community
is vulnerable to food insecurity. In this example, rural comWest
munities that are entirely “off the grid” confront the barVirginia
riers to accessing the healthy foods they are missing. Because
the food system isn’t working for anyone, the solutions they
Oregon
come up with have to work for everyone, including people
who are hungry.
Oregon is the 9th largest state in the country, more
than 96,000 square miles.39 Rural areas account for
99 percent of the landmass, while Portland and a
handful of smaller urban enclaves are home to 80 percent of the population.40 The 20 percent who live in rural Oregon are scattered far and wide, and it is not uncommon for people
living in the more sparsely populated areas to have to drive more than 50 miles each way
to visit a full-service grocery store. The cost of fuel to get back and forth a couple of times a
month bite hard into the value of a family’s SNAP benefits.
It seems strange that people should have to drive so far to purchase food with so much
arable land all around them. Oregon is one of the most agriculturally diverse states, yet there
are food deserts all over the state—sometimes right where food is being produced. Thousands of
Figure 4.6 Food System Overview

Production
Activities related to growing
and harvesting food and other
agricultural products.

Waste

Processing

Disposal or reclamation
of unconsumed food or
agricultural waste.

Preparing and converting
agricultural products for sale
and consumption.

Consumption

Distribution

Preparing and
eating food.

Moving food from the farm or
processor to the point of sale,
such as a farmers market, grocery
store, or other location.

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