Rapid urbanization and uneven food system development

Keywords: public markets, supermarkets, urban food systems, food access, SaTScan
Abstract Type: Paper Abstract

Abstract

Access to supermarkets and public markets shape food security in urban Southern Africa. Using remotely sensed retailer location and population datasets, we analyze the spatial-temporal development of supermarkets and public markets in Lusaka, Zambia from 2004 to 2020. As Lusaka’s population grew by 116%, we found that supermarkets increased from 9 to 54 (500%) while public markets increased from 52 to 65 (25%). Using SaTScan spatial-temporal analysis, we identified seven significant areas of high supermarket development (p<0.05) clustered from 2013 to 2020 in lower density, higher income residential areas. During this period ten new public markets were community-established, suggesting a lack of direct involvement by the government to support public markets at a similar pace as population growth. Supermarket development without concomitant development of public markets, can negatively impact food access, food security, and food system equitability in two ways: 1) supermarket development is spatially uneven, favoring more food secure residential areas; 2) supermarket development is outpacing the establishment of public markets, which have more favorable food purchasing conditions for low-income households. Improving food security in rapidly growing Southern African cities will require policies that promote retailer diversity, which can improve urban food system resilience and equitability.