Price and Expenditure Elasticities for Fresh Fruits in an Urban Food Desert

This study addresses the knowledge gap concerning the demand for fresh fruit in an urban food desert, where healthy foods are scarce by definition. Using register data from a non-profit greengrocer in Detroit—one of America’s largest and most severe food deserts—expenditure and price elasticities of fresh fruits are estimated. The results show that, if urban food desert consumers are given access to normally priced produce of acceptable quality, they will purchase it. Expenditure was found to play a major role in determining fruit demand. The food desert consumers were also found to be more price responsive than the average US consumer. The policy implications are clear: introducing neighbourhood stores providing access to good quality produce at competitive prices could be an important component of increasing fruit consumption.