In celebration of Food Day—a nationwide celebration and movement for healthy, affordable, and sustainable food—the Mississippi South Delta PLACE MATTERS team held a community meeting to discuss the connection between the rise in obesity and lack of affordable, healthy foods in Sharkey and Issaquena counties. The South Delta PLACE MATTERS team is part of an initiative of the Joint Center for Political and Economic Studies that builds the capacity of communities to address social, economic, and environmental conditions that shape health and health outcomes.

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The South Delta PLACE MATTERS team intends to draw attention to the root causes of this obesity crisis: the social, economic, and environmental factors that shape Mississippians’ opportunities to be healthy. Many neighborhoods in Sharkey and Issaquena counties lack the resources that residents need in order to buy healthy foods and live active lifestyles.

Download the full press release below.