How Far for Fresh Food? Mapping the Geographic Barriers to Healthy Eating

For many Massachusetts families, the problem isn’t just affording healthy food—it’s getting to it. A grocery store may be just a few miles away, but without a car, it might as well be across the state. This project exposes the invisible barriers to food access, mapping how factors like cost, location, and transportation determine who can actually reach fresh, affordable meals—and who is left behind.

a person cutting tomatoes from a vine with a pair of red garden shears

From left: Qian Zhao (Mathematics and Statistics), Chaitra Gopalappa (Mechanical and Industrial Engineering), Eleni Christofa (Civil and Environmental Engineering), Kalpana Poudel-Tandukar (Nursing)

two women speak in a project space about the content of a laptop screen

Food insecurity isn’t just about what’s on the shelves—it’s about who can reach those shelves in the first place. While food deserts are widely recognized in conversations about food security, that only scratches the surface: nutritious food may be nearby but prohibitively expensive, while affordable food may be inaccessible without reliable transportation. This study examines the true geography of food access, revealing how cost, location, and transit routes intersect to determine whether healthy eating is a real option or an impossible challenge.

A multidisciplinary team of students and faculty will conduct a statewide analysis of food affordability and accessibility in Massachusetts, integrating public transit routes, food retailer pricing, and community perspectives. Using geospatial modeling, they will quantify how many households can feasibly access fresh and affordable food via public transportation, pinpointing where gaps in access exist.

people in desks watching a presentation bearing the title "Healthy Living"

But data alone doesn’t tell the full story of a community’s lived experience. Through interviews with community organizations, residents, and policymakers, the team will identify systemic barriers and potential solutions that numbers alone would struggle to capture.

Students from diverse disciplines—including public health, urban planning, engineering, economics, and statistics—will gain hands-on experience in spatial analysis, data visualization, qualitative research, and policy evaluation. Working directly with local communities, they will see how research can drive social change, shaping policies that make nutritious food not just affordable, but truly accessible.

By combining hard data with on-the-ground realities, this project aims to inform policies that address food insecurity through smarter urban planning, improved public transit strategies, and targeted food assistance programs. The findings will provide a foundation for future research and funding opportunities, such as the National Science Foundation’s Smart and Connected Communities program, to develop scalable strategies for improving food security and health equity across diverse populations.