Grocery store on wheels brings fresh food to areas to areas without supermarket

TROTWOOD — A new type of grocery option made its way to Trotwood this week.

Miami Valley-based organization Homefull brought its grocery store on wheels to downtown Trotwood, as part of an initiative to “provide grocery access to food desert areas of Montgomery County.”

“We visit neighborhoods that traditional grocery stores have long pulled out of or won’t reinvest in, so we visit food desert neighborhoods,” said Trudy Elder, Homefull chief strategic officer.

The mobile market stopped at the Trotwood Church of the Brethren Friday afternoon, where it will be every week going forward.

Pastor Jennifer Keeney Scarr offered the church parking lot up after hearing concerns from her congregation about convenient access to fresh food.

>>UD men’s basketball team pulls out of South Dakota tournament

“A lot of people have to drive 15, 20, 25 minutes to get to the grocery store. Some people have to take the bus. So having it here, close by, this makes easy, convenient grocery shopping with really good food,” Keeney Scarr said.

Inside the mobile store, it looks like a smaller version of a typical grocery store. Shelves are lined with nearly every form of grocery item – with a particular emphasis on fresh fruit and vegetables.

But Elder pointed out, three items not there; a nod to the organization’s focus on health: alcohol, cigarettes and lottery tickets.

The organization accepts all forms of payments including SNAP cards, and through a partnership with Montgomery County is offering dollar for dollar matches on grocery expenses for fruit and vegetable purchases.

Schedule for Homefull’s stops in Miami Valley: https://www.homefull.org/food-2/mobile-grocery/mobile-grocery-schedule/

Cox Media Group