Work continues to fill a gap in neighborhoods that don't have grocery stores.
Out of 297 neighborhoods in Milwaukee County, 113 don't have easy access to quality fresh food.
You live in a food desert if you don't have a grocery store within a half mile of where you live. According to the USDA and Hunger Task Force, that's almost 40 percent of the neighborhoods in Milwaukee County.
Inside the gas station at 807 Atkinson Ave, Maya Mayes and Mike McGee co-owners of Country Fresh BP Foods are working to solve the food desert issue.
"Healthy eating has always been part of my lifestyle,” Mayes said,
'We're here to educate our people," McGee said. "We live in a food desert right now and, we're trying to change those dynamics."
They farm and serve fresh healthy food options for their neighbors.
Maggie Yarbrough with Hunger Task Force says food deserts are in 24 of Milwaukee County’s 35 zip codes.
"In looking at those neighborhoods, we're looking at 38 percent of Milwaukee neighborhoods that are deemed food deserts at that half-mile radius," Yarbrough said.
So to create access to fresh and affordable food, Hunger Task Force partners with Pick and Save to bring healthy choices to neighborhoods.
The mobile food markets visit different food deserts every week Monday through Friday. They do this because they say 13 percent of people who live in food deserts don't have a car.
