OPINIONS
LETTERS TO THE EDITOR
Grocery Data Overlooks Food Desert Details
In the Richmond Times-Dispatch, I always read with interest the annual report about Richmond’s grocery store rankings.
I appreciate reporter, Sean Jones’ article related to the data provided from Food World, which tracks grocery stores sales.
This year’s graphic offered a good listing of the top 20 rankings in Richmond. However, I would still argue that stores like CVS, 7-Eleven, and big box stores like Costco truly aren’t grocery stores.
The inclusion of CVS, 7-Eleven, Wawa, Walgreens, Sheetz, and Fas Mart makes me wonder if customers shop for their groceries there out of convenience or necessity?
If it is necessity, is that because they live in a “food desert” where grocery stores are absent?
That makes me curious about how the Market at 25th is doing? Richmonders might recall this bold initiative to build from the ground up a full-service grocery store in the middle of a food desert in Richmond’s Church Hill.
If the Market at 25th has been successful, then why hasn’t that footprint been expanded?
Maybe that is because the article makes clear that “new supermarket development has slowed.” To me this means that opportunities for Walmart, Kroger, Food Lion, Publix, and Aldi to consider developing stores in known food desert zip codes seems less likely.
The annual report from Food World will continue to focus on market share and trends.
Perhaps in the future, Food World might consider adding two new data fields for Richmond: How many food deserts do we have, and who from the top 20 list is the market share leader in supplying surplus food to the non-profits and food pantries in our communities?
Might the inclusion of this data help to see that market share and annual sales isn’t the whole story?
Bill Pike
TuckahoeNote from author: I was honored to have this letter published in the Richmond Times-Dispatch on Thursday, August 13, 2026.
might be baloney 