HEP 452 Module 2 Discussion Market Makeovers

Market Makeover is a comprehensive strategy for addressing the grocery gap in food deserts in areas that have limited access to quality, healthy food, an overabundance of fast foods, and an alarmingly high rate of chronic conditions related to poor diet. A coalition, on the other hand, is a group of individuals or organizations with a common interest and who agree to work together toward a common goal. Market Makeovers involve the physical transformation of the existing corner stores, the addition of fresh produce, business training for store owners and operators, education and community engagement, and social marketing to change health behaviors and increase fresh fruit and vegetable consumption.

Community development involves creating conditions of economic and social progress for the entire community, with its active participation and the fullest possible reliance on the community’s initiative. While market makeovers involve training and community engagement, community development demands the full participation of all community members for the realization of the set goals including providing a solution to healthy food shortages in the community. To ensure the realization of market makeovers, community development aims at developing the capacity essential to deal the community problems, encouraging people to participate in making, adjusting, and controlling the major changes taking place in their communities.

Citizen participation is a crucial process to ensure the success of Market makeovers in the community. Citizen participation in the process of involving people in the community in making decisions that affect their lives and therefore serve the purpose of undertaking activities to improve the conditions in the community. While market makeovers seek to address health gaps in the community, it takes citizen participation to learn of the existing gaps, and therefore, mobilizing community members to give their opinion plays a crucial role in making the right decision in regard to health needs prioritization.

References

Butterfoss, F. D. (2007). Coalitions and partnerships in community health. Jossey-Bass.