Infrastructure and making groceries, they’re more connected than you think

In a guest column appearing in The Advocate, Ken Kolb, a Furman University sociology professor and chair of the department, unpacks the relationship between infrastructure and groceries, and the main goal of grocery store retailers, which is to keep shoppers coming back. He says big-box retailers like Walmart and Costco keep prices low and quality high, but the infrastructure to make them work has left poorer communities in the lurch. “A resilient food system — one that serves all New Orleanians — needs a variety of retail food options,” he writes, citing the need for neighborhood grocers in addition to the larger retailers.