Striving4Zen

For years, Mel Williams rarely ate fruit and vegetables -- unless it came out of a can.

Fresh produce was too expensive or too far away until the state-funded "Veggie Mobile" started bringing the fruits and vegetables to him at a lower price.

With the rapidly climbing cost of food and fuel, states and nonprofit groups are finding ways to get healthy food to these underserved areas.

In New York, the health department gave $500,000 to the Veggie Mobile, operated by the Capital District Community Gardens and delivering fresh, locally grown produce to people in Albany, Troy and nearby Schenectady who otherwise might never buy a fresh apple or tomato.

"It makes it possible for families to include these foods in their diet because it's about half the price of what it is in the market," said Amy Klein, executive director of the nonprofit.

When compared to New York Supermarket -- a small grocery in the poor Arbor Hill neighborhood of Albany -- the Veggie Mobile offered dramatic savings, more selection and fresher options. Bananas sold for $0.99 a pound at the supermarket, but went for $0.59 a pound from the Veggie Mobile. Iceberg lettuce was $1 each at the mobile grocery, and $1.99 at the New York Supermarket. Cucumbers sold for $0.89 each at the neighborhood market, but were 3 for $1 from the Veggie Mobile.

The difference means that poor families cannot only afford and access fresh produce, but can buy more than if they relied on the neighborhood options.

"People were skeptical and thought they (low-income families) weren't going to come, and they're not going to spend their money on fresh produce," Klein said of the Veggie Mobile. "But they are, and they're buying it in large quantities ... They're not looking for a freebie, they're appreciative that it's there, that it's available and it's affordable."

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