Knoxville, Tennessee is known for its vibrant culture, outdoor spaces, and strong community identity—but beneath that surface lies a growing crisis: expanding food deserts and worsening food injustice. The issue is not new, but recent economic shifts and lingering inequalities have turned food access into one of Knoxville’s most urgent challenges.
According to the USDA Food Access Research Atlas, multiple census tracts in Knoxville qualify as food deserts, especially in neighborhoods such as Lonsdale, East Knoxville, Mechanicsville, Marble City, and parts of South Knoxville. Roughly 23% of Knoxville residents live more than a mile from a full-service grocery store, with limited vehicle access compounding the issue. In some neighborhoods, that figure exceeds 35%.
The rising cost of groceries adds a second layer of difficulty. Between 2020 and 2024, the cost of basic staples in Tennessee grew by over 21%, outpacing wage increases. Residents who already travel long distances for food now face higher prices at the end of the journey.
Local advocates emphasize that this is more than an economic issue—it’s a justice issue. Food deserts disproportionately impact Black, Latino, disabled, and low-income families in Knoxville, creating generational consequences for health, education, and quality of life. Studies from the Knox County Health Department show significantly higher rates of Type 2 diabetes, heart disease, and childhood obesity in neighborhoods with limited access to fresh produce.
Community members often describe the daily exhaustion of navigating this reality. Parents take multiple buses to reach a grocery store. Elderly residents rely on convenience stores with limited, highly processed options. Working families sacrifice nutrition for affordability and proximity.
Yet Knoxville is also seeing a rise in grassroots solutions. Urban farms like BattleField Farm & Gardens, community fridges in East Knoxville, farmers markets, and nonprofit-led initiatives such as Rooted East and Second Harvest’s Mobile Pantries are filling critical gaps. Some residents are turning to home gardening as a small but meaningful step toward self-sufficiency.
Still, structural barriers persist. Unlike larger metropolitan regions, Knoxville’s zoning and transit systems have not kept pace with the needs of communities that historically lacked investment. Expanding the KAT bus system to include direct grocery routes, incentivizing grocery development in underserved areas, and modifying zoning to allow for more urban agriculture are all solutions being discussed by local advocacy groups.
Food injustice is a regional issue, but the impact is local—felt at dinner tables, in lunchboxes, and in health outcomes across generations. Knoxville stands at a crossroads: continue accepting patchwork solutions or move toward comprehensive, equity-centered food policy.
Geopoly’s map-based storytelling offers an opportunity to visualize these inequities—placing real people, real stories, and real locations onto the map. In Knoxville, the path to food justice begins with visibility and community-driven pressure.