Delaware Grocery Initiative signed into law

State leaders hope the new Delaware Grocery Initiative will help relieve some of the First State’s food insecurity problems for residents. l PHOTO COURTESY OF ENGIN AKYURT/UNSPLASH

WILMINGTON — As product prices continue to increase alongside the cost of living, statewide leaders have stepped up to study and address food insecurity while providing relief through the Delaware Grocery Initiative.

More than 12% of Delawareans currently face food insecurity, higher than the national average and an increase from 11.7% in 2019, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. But leaders like Governor John Carney, Senator Darius Brown and Representative Nnamdi Chukwuocha (D-Del.) hope to help alleviate the issue now that Carney has signed Senate Substitute 1 for Senate Bill 254. 

The bill, championed by Brown and Chukwuocha, “seeks to provide financial assistance to eligible food resources,” according to the bill synopsis, authorizing the Division of Small Business to implement the grant and financial support system while encouraging more research into food deserts across the state. Food deserts are considered areas where low-income families have limited access to supermarkets or vendors that sell food.

The grant program will run for three years. A report of food access strategy will be made before the General Assembly in 2025.

“This bill establishes the Delaware Grocery Initiative which will develop a statewide strategy to combat food insecurity and create a grant program to support businesses and organizations that bring fresh food to underserved communities,” Brown wrote on his Facebook page after the event. 

“Food is a fundamental need and it is unfortunate that so many Delawareans still lack access to fresh, healthy options in their communities. We all know that the quality of our food directly affects our overall well-being and health outcomes,” Chukwuocha added on his own page. “We must continue to seek creative and comprehensive solutions to ensure everyone has access to the foods and markets they need to thrive, and the signing of this bill is a significant step toward that goal.” 

Carney signed the bill Thursday morning, Aug. 29, during a signing ceremony that brought a crowd to the Kingswood Community Center in Wilmington, emphasizing the importance of support for both citizens and businesses in the First State. 

“Food insecurity is very real in the state of Delaware and I don’t think I have to tell this crowd that,” Food Bank of Delaware Vice President of External Affairs Chad Robinson said during the signing. “The latest statistics from Feeding America’s Map the Meal Gap say that there’s over 120,000 Delawareans that are struggling with food insecurity. That’s approximately one in eight Delawareans in general and one in five children.”

The new holistic effort at addressing food deserts, or areas where people tend to have limited access to affordable food options, including fresh fruits and vegetables, is another step along the way to eliminating the issue altogether and ultimately improving the health and economic vitality of the state as a whole, leaders say. 

“When cheap over-processed junk food is the only option available for thousands of Delawareans, we can’t be surprised when our health care costs go through the roof, our obesity and diabetes rates hit record levels, and we see worsening inequities in our life expectancy,” Brown said in a press release after the bill was passed by the Senate. “We simply can’t wait any longer for the national supermarket chains to fix our problems for us.”

The bill was ultimately passed unanimously by both the Senate and the House of Representatives before the governor signed it into law. Carney also recently signed a bill expanding access to free meals during the school day for students across the state.