A Community-Informed Approach to Improving Food Access in Texas

Rising housing costs, long travel distances to grocery stores, and limited access to nutritious foods can make it difficult for families to put balanced meals on the table. Food Access Community Needs Assessments, led by the Central Texas Food Bank and supported by the Bloomberg American Health Initiative, are helping bring those challenges into clearer focus while also pointing toward solutions. 

From June 2024 to June 2025, the Central Texas Food Bank, a collaborating organization of the Initiative, conducted five Food Access Community Needs Assessments across six counties in the state: Hays, Bastrop, Williamson, Travis, Bell, and Coryell.  

These assessments offer one of the most detailed looks yet at how food systems and food environments function across the region. By combining spatial mapping data with direct input from local neighbors and stakeholders, the project paints a comprehensive picture of both the structural barriers and the community strengths that shape food access in Central Texas. 

Over the course of the year, more than 1,400 residents completed surveys, over 150 community members participated in focus groups, and another 150 stakeholders, from more than 20 sectors including agriculture, public health, transportation, and local government, shared insights through interviews. This approach ensured that the findings reflected lived experience from diverse perspectives as well as robust data. 

Across counties, several consistent themes emerged. Residents in both rural and urban communities reported that rising food and housing costs are placing increased pressure on household budgets. Many described transportation barriers that make it difficult to reach grocery stores or food assistance sites. Others highlighted the limited availability of healthy, affordable, and culturally relevant foods in their neighborhoods. 

The assessments also revealed gaps in access to federal nutrition programs and a need for stronger coordination among local organizations working on food issues. At the same time, local farmers described their own set of challenges, including land use competition, climate-related pressures, and a lack of shared infrastructure to support regional food production.  

Since the conclusion of these assessments, the Central Texas Food Bank has used the data to expand services in areas with the greatest need, including launching new Food Is Medicine initiatives, opening additional mobile and school pantry sites, and expanding home food delivery services.   

Beyond program expansion, the assessments are helping guide larger regional food system efforts. Local food security coalitions are using the data to inform planning and policy priorities, and the Central Texas Food Bank has launched the Central Texas Regional Food System Council to strengthen cross-sector coordination and upstream food system solutions.