Skip to main content

Advertisement

SpringerLink
Log in

Inequities in the urban food environment of a Brazilian city

  • Original Paper
  • Published:
Food Security Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

Food environment refers to the physical, social, cultural, economic and political contexts in which people engage with food systems in order to acquire, prepare and consume food. In 2016, we investigated the food environment of districts in Juiz de Fora, Minas Gerais, Brazil, according to different socio-economic levels. We proposed a categorization of food establishments according to the NOVA food classification, devised thematic maps, tested the significance of food retailers’ agglomerations by univariate K function and detected district clusters using variables of interest. A total of 23 districts (19.1%) presented high or very high vulnerability. Establishments only or mainly selling ultra-processed foods presented higher frequencies (52.7%) in comparison to other categories throughout the city. The downtown district had the most of all types of establishments. Districts of greater vulnerability had fewer establishments. The environmental iniquities we have identified reinforce the need to implement public policies that promote healthy urban food environments.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Log in via an institution

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Institutional subscriptions

Fig. 1
Fig. 2
Fig. 3

Similar content being viewed by others

References

  • Assis, M. M., Leite, M. A., Carmo, A. S., Andrade, A. C. S., Pessoa, M. C., Netto, M. P., et al. (2018). Food environment, social deprivation and obesity among students from Brazilian public schools. Public Health Nutrition, 1–8.

  • Barbosa, A. D., Magalhães, D. F. D., Silva, J. A. D., Silva, M. X., Cardoso, M. D. F. E. C., Meneses, J. N. C., & Cunha, M. . C. M. (2012). Caracterização dos acidentes escorpiônicos em Belo Horizonte, Minas Gerais, Brasil, 2005 a 2009. Cadernos de Saúde Pública, 28, 1785–1789.

  • Belo Horizonte. Índice de Vulnerabilidade da Saúde 2012 (2013). Resource document. Belo Horizonte. https://prefeitura.pbh.gov.br/sites/default/files/estrutura-de-governo/saude/2018/publicacaoes-da-vigilancia-em-saude/indice_vulnerabilidade2012.pdf. Accessed 25 May 2018.

  • Block, J. P., Scribner, R. A., & DeSalvo, K. B. (2004). Fast food, race/ethnicity, and income: A geographic analysis. American Journal of Preventive Medicine, 27(3), 211–217.

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Bridle-Fitzpatrick, S. (2015). Food deserts or food swamps?: A mixed-methods study of local food environments in a Mexican city. Social Science & Medicine, 142, 202–213.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Bruzinga, J. S., Oliveira, M. L. R., Machado, E. L. M., Leite, H. G., Pereira, I. M., & Nogueira, G. S. (2013). Spatial distribution of Pequi adult individuals. Scientia Forestalis, 41(98), 249–256.

    Google Scholar 

  • Chen, J., Yang, S., Li, H., Zhang, B., & Lv, J. (2013). Research on geographical environment unit division based on the method of natural breaks (Jenks). The International Archives of the Photogrammetry, Remote Sensing and Spatial Information Sciences, 3, 47–50.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Dubowitz, T., Zenk, S. N., Ghosh-Dastidar, B., Cohen, D. A., Beckman, R., Hunte, G., et al. (2015). Healthy food access for urban food desert residents: Examination of the food environment, food purchasing practices, diet and BMI. Public Health Nutrition, 18(12), 2220–2230.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Egger, G., & Swinburn, B. (1997). An “ecological” approach to the obesity pandemic. BMJ, 315(7106), 477–480.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Ellaway, A., & Macintyre, S. (2000). Shopping for food in socially contrasting localities. British Food Journal, 102(1), 52–59.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Find Latitude and Longitude (n.d.). Website. http://www.findlatitudeandlongitude.com/. Accessed 31 May 2018.

  • Fraser, L. K., Edwards, K. L., Cade, J., & Clarke, G. P. (2010). The geography of fast food outlets: A review. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, 7(5), 2290–2308.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Friche, A. A. L. (2011). A Utilização de Indicadores de Contexto na Análise de Eventos de Saúde. PhD thesis. Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais, Belo Horizonte, 130p.

  • Ghosh-Dastidar, B., Cohen, D., Hunter, G., Zenk, S. N., Huang, C., Beckman, R., & Dubowitz, T. (2014). Distance to store, food prices, and obesity in urban food deserts. American Journal of Preventive Medicine, 47(5), 587–595.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Giskes, K., Van-Lenthe, F., Avendano-Pabon, M., & Brug, J. (2011). A systematic review of environmental factors and obesogenic dietary intakes among adults: Are we getting closer to understanding obesogenic environments? Obesity Reviews, 12(5), e95–e106.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • High Level Panel of Experts on Food Security and Nutrition (HLPE) (2017). Nutrition and food systems. A report by the High Level Panel of Experts on Food Security and Nutrition of the Committee on World Food Security Resource document. 152 p. http://www.fao.org/3/a-i7846e.pdf. Accessed 18 June 2018.

  • Instituto Brasileiro de Geografia e Estatística (IBGE). Censo 2010. Website. http://www.censo2010.ibge.gov.br/. Accessed 12 June 2018.

  • Instituto Brasileiro de Geografia e Estatística (IBGE) (n.d.a). Comissão Nacional de Classificação. Classificação Nacional de Atividades Econômicas. Website. http://www.cnae.ibge.gov.br/. Accessed 12 June 2018.

  • Instituto Brasileiro de Geografia e Estatística (IBGE) (n.d.b). Geodésia. Website. http://www.ibge.gov.br/home/geociencias/geodesia/. Accessed 24 June 2018.

  • Jaime, P. C., Duran, A. C., Sarti, F. M., & Lock, K. (2011). Investigating environmental determinants of diet, physical activity, and overweight among adults in Sao Paulo, Brazil. Journal of Urban Health, 88(3), 567–581.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Jain, A. K., Murty, M. N., & Flynn, P. J. (1999). Data clustering: A review. ACM Computing Surveys, 31(3), 264–323.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Juiz de Fora (n.d.). Secretaria de Atividades Urbanas da Prefeitura de Juiz de Fora. Website. https://www.pjf.mg.gov.br/secretarias/sau/. Accessed 18 Aug 2018.

  • Kwate, N. O. A. (2008). Fried chicken and fresh apples: Racial segregation as a fundamental cause of fast food density in black neighborhoods. Health & Place, 14(1), 32–44.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Larson, N. I., Story, M. T., & Nelson, M. C. (2009). Neighborhood environments: Disparities in access to healthy foods in the US. American Journal of Preventive Medicine, 36(1), 74–81.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Machado, P. P., Claro, R. M., Canella, D. S., Sarti, F. M., & Levy, R. B. (2017). Price and convenience: The influence of supermarkets on consumption of ultra-processed foods and beverages in Brazil. Appetite, 116, 381–388.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Maguire, E. R., Burgoine, T., & Monsivais, P. (2015). Area deprivation and the food environment over time: A repeated cross-sectional study on takeaway outlet density and supermarket presence in Norfolk, UK, 1990–2008. Health & Place, 33, 142–147.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Monteiro, C. A., Cannon, G., Levy, R. B., Moubarac, J. C., Louzada, M. L., Rauber, F., et al. (2019). Ultra-processed foods: What they are and how to identify them. Public Health Nutr, 1-6.

  • Moodie, R., Stuckler, D., Monteiro, C., Sheron, N., Neal, B., Thamarangsi, T., Lincoln P., Casswell S. (Lancet NCD Action Group) (2013). Profits and pandemics: Prevention of harmful effects of tobacco, alcohol, and ultra-processed food and drink industries. Lancet, 381(9867), 670–679.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Popkin, B. M., & Reardon, T. (2018). Obesity and the food system transformation in Latin America. Obes Ver, 19(8), 1028–1064.

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Reardon, T., Henson, S., & Berdegué, J. (2007). ‘Proactive fast-tracking’diffusion of supermarkets in developing countries: Implications for market institutions and trade. Journal of Economic Geography, 7(4), 399–431.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Reardon, T., Timmer, C. P., Barrett, C. B., & Berdegue, J. (2003). The rise of supermarkets in Africa, Asia, and Latin America. American Journal of Agricultural Economics, 85(5), 1140–1146.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Ripley, B. D. (1981). Spatial statistics (252 p). New York: Wiley-IEEE.

    Book  Google Scholar 

  • Rundle, A., Neckerman, K. M., Freeman, L., Lovasi, G. S., Purciel, M., Quinn, J., et al. (2008). Neighborhood food environment and walkability predict obesity in New York City. Environmental Health Perspectives, 117(3), 442–447.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Sallis, J. F., & Glanz, K. (2009). Physical activity and food environments: Solutions to the obesity epidemic. The Milbank Quarterly, 87(1), 123–154.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Si, Z., Scott, S., & McCordic, C. (2019). Wet markets, supermarkets and alternative food sources: Consumers’ food access in Nanjing, China. Canadian Journal of Development Studies/Revue canadienne d'études du développement, 40(1), 78–96.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Tavares, G. M. (Org.) (2006). Atlas Social - Juiz de Fora: Diagnóstico. Prefeitura de Juiz de Fora, 294 p.

  • Tacoli, C. (2017). Food (in) security in rapidly urbanising, low-income contexts. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, 14(12), 1554.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Tribuna de Minas (2018). Salário de admissão em Juiz de Fora não chega a 2 mínimos. Website. https://tribunademinas.com.br/noticias/economia/16-05-2018/salario-de-admissao-em-juiz-de-fora-nao-chega-2-minimos.html. Accessed 13 Sept 2020.

  • Turner, C., Aggarwal, A., Walls, H., Herforth, A., Drewnowski, A., Coates, J., Kalamatianou, S., & Kadiyala, S. (2018). Concepts and critical perspectives for food environment research: A global framework with implications for action in low-and middle-income countries. Global Food Security, 18, 93–101.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) (n.d.). Economic Research Service. Food Access Research Atlas. Website. http://www.ers.usda.gov/dataproducts/food-access-research-atlas.aspx. Accessed 9 June 2018.

  • Van Lenthe, F. J., & Mackenbach, J. P. (2002). Neighbourhood deprivation and overweight: The GLOBE study. International Journal of Obesity, 26(2), 234–240.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Walker, R. E., Keane, C. R., & Burke, J. G. (2010). Disparities and access to healthy food in the United States: A review of food deserts literature. Health & Place, 16(5), 876–884.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Weatherspoon, D. D., & Reardon, T. (2003). The rise of supermarkets in Africa: Implications for agrifood systems and the rural poor. Development Policy Review, 21(3), 333–355.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Zhang, Q. F., Pan, Z. (2013). The transformation of urban vegetable retail in China: Wet markets, supermarkets and informal markets in Shanghai. Journal of Contemporary Asia, 43(3), 497–518.

Download references

Acknowledgements

We thank Brazilian National Council for Scientific and Technological Development (CNPq) and Brazilian Coordination for the Improvement of Higher Education Personnel (CAPES) for financial support. We also thank Geoffrey Cannon for English revision.

Authorship

Maria Alvim Leite, Maíra Macário de Assis and Ariene Silva do Carmo contributed in the design, data analysis and writing of the final version of the article; Mário Círio Nogueira and Michele Pereira Netto contributed in the data statistical analysis and in the writing of the final version of the article; Larissa Loures Mendes contributed in the study design, writing and critical review of the final version of the article. All authors have approved the final version of the manuscript and declare that they are responsible for all aspects of the manuscript, ensuring its accuracy and integrity.

Funding

This work was supported by the Brazilian National Council for Scientific and Technological Development (CNPq; grant number 484946/2013–7). The Brazilian Coordination for the Improvement of Higher Education Personnel (CAPES) also supported with scholarships to Maria Alvim Leite, Maíra Macário de Assis and Ariene Silva do Carmo (finance code 001).

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Preventive Medicine Department, Medicine School, University of São Paulo (USP), Av Dr Arnaldo, 455, Pacaembu, São Paulo, SP, CEP: 01246-903, Brazil

    Maria Alvim Leite

  2. Postgraduate Program in Child and Adolescent Health, Medicine School, Federal University of Minas Gerais (UFMG), Av Professor Alfredo Balena, 190, Santa Efigênia, Belo Horizonte, MG, CEP: 30130-100, Brazil

    Maíra Macário de Assis & Ariene Silva do Carmo

  3. Collective Health Department, Medicine School, Federal University of Juiz de Fora (UFJF), José Lourenço Kelmer St, Martelos, Juiz de Fora, MG, CEP: 36036-330, Brazil

    Mário Círio Nogueira

  4. Nutrition Department, Federal University of Juiz de Fora (UFJF), José Lourenço Kelmer St, Martelos, Juiz de Fora, MG, CEP: 36036-330, Brazil

    Michele Pereira Netto

  5. Nutrition Department, Nursing School, Federal University of Minas Gerais (UFMG), Av Professor Alfredo Balena, 190, Santa Efigênia, Belo Horizonte, MG, CEP: 30130-100, Brazil

    Larissa Loures Mendes

Authors
  1. Maria Alvim Leite
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. Maíra Macário de Assis
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  3. Ariene Silva do Carmo
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  4. Mário Círio Nogueira
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  5. Michele Pereira Netto
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  6. Larissa Loures Mendes
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Maria Alvim Leite.

Ethics declarations

Conflict of interest

The authors declare that they have no conflict of interest.

Ethics

This study is part of the project “Built and social environments: relationship with overweight, obesity and food consumption of children and adolescents of Juiz de Fora, Minas Gerais”, developed by Universidade Federal de Juiz de Fora (UFJF) and approved by the Research Ethics Committee (protocol number 522.694/ 2014).

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Check for updates. Verify currency and authenticity via CrossMark

Cite this article

Leite, M.A., de Assis, M.M., do Carmo, A.S. et al. Inequities in the urban food environment of a Brazilian city. Food Sec. 13, 539–549 (2021). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12571-020-01116-w

Download citation

  • Received:

  • Accepted:

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s12571-020-01116-w

Keywords

Search

Navigation