River City food: Assessing food access and production in downtown New Albany, Indiana

Through this project, I question whether the downtown area of New Albany, Indiana is a place where residents face barriers to accessing affordable nutrient dense foods and maintaining household food security. I also sought to understand the dilemmas faced by local food producers such as limited food access to retail markets for their products and inadequate financial profits thus not earning a living wage. To determine the answers to these questions, I surveyed local food producers, local food consumers, local nonprofit food assistance agencies, locally owned businesses, and food retail outlets. I then analyzed these surveys in terms of differences between cost and availability within this identified area and the surrounding communities. I found that the area studied is a food desert. A review of literature placed these findings within what Gramsci would call a hegemonic national food production system. Further, I argue that the existence of local producers and their markets provide a pre-figurative outline of what may be a counter-hegemonic response to the present system.