Regional food systems

Food Access in North-Central Minnesota

Census-tract food access indicators for Beltrami, Hubbard, Clearwater, and Cass counties, with tribal nation boundaries and county agricultural context. Click a tract for detail; hover a county for summary statistics.

42,789

residents — 41.9% of the region — live in low-income, low-access tracts

vs. 18.7% statewide in Minnesota

13 of 30

census tracts are flagged low-income and low-access by USDA

22,478

residents (22.0%) live more than 10 miles from a supermarket

25

SNAP-authorized supermarkets & grocery stores — alongside 38 convenience stores and 14 farmers markets

Reading the map

Tracts shaded darkest are flagged by USDA as both low income and low access — most residents live more than 1 mile (urban) or 10 miles (rural) from a supermarket, or lack vehicle access. Lighter shades indicate a single flag (low access or low income only).

About the data

Food access flags use the USDA Food Access Research Atlas (2019, the most recent release), which is built on 2010 census tract geography. Tract poverty and vehicle statistics use matching ACS 2015–2019 5-year estimates. Diabetes and obesity estimates are CDC PLACES model-based values, population-weighted onto the same tract geography. Store locations show SNAP-authorized retailers from the USDA Retailer Locator. County agriculture figures are from the 2022 Census of Agriculture; the food environment index is from County Health Rankings 2025. Tribal nation boundaries show the main reservation land bodies; small scattered land parcels (mostly Red Lake Nation holdings) are omitted at this scale for legibility.