County food-access profile · Louisiana
Avoyelles Parish, LA
Distance to a supermarket is a real obstacle for a meaningful share of Avoyelles Parish residents. This profile covers who qualifies as a food desert here and the income, SNAP, and vehicle-access context behind it, from the USDA Food Access Research Atlas (2019) and the Census ACS (2024).
- 20.5%
- low-access pop.
- 2
- food-desert tracts
- 27.9%
- on SNAP
- 39K
- residents (ACS 2024)
The food-access picture
20.5% of Avoyelles Parish residents live in a low-access area, and 2 of its 9 census tracts are USDA-designated food deserts.
- 3
- low-access tracts
- 5K
- food-desert residents
- 9.8%
- households, no vehicle
- 27.8%
- below poverty line
Low access = living more than 1 mile (urban) or 10 miles (rural) from the nearest supermarket. Food deserts add a low-income condition (USDA LILA, 1-and-10-mile measure).
USDA data puts Avoyelles Parish's low-access share at 20.5%, above the national share. 3 of the county's 9 census tracts are classified low-access, meaning residents there live far from a supermarket, an area covering about 8,645 people. 2 of those also meet the low-income condition that defines a food desert, home to roughly 4,866 low-income residents.
How the USDA defines low-access and food-desert tracts
The USDA measures food access by distance to the nearest supermarket. A census tract is "low-access" when a meaningful share of residents live more than one mile from a supermarket in urban areas, or more than ten miles in rural areas. A tract becomes a "food desert" only when it is both low-access and low-income, because distance is far harder to overcome for households without a car or a cushion in the budget. Counts on this page are aggregated from the tract level, where the federal data is actually published, so a single county figure can hide neighbourhoods that are much better or much worse served than the average. Distance also does not capture everything that shapes whether a family eats well: the presence of a full-service grocer rather than a convenience store, public transit, food pantries, and the price and quality of what is on the shelf all matter beyond the radius the Atlas can draw.
How Avoyelles Parish compares nationally
Relative to the 3,133 U.S. counties with USDA food-access data, Avoyelles Parish's 20.5% low-access share is elevated, higher than 47% of them and ranked #1,645 most-affected nationwide.
Avoyelles Parish: USDA Food-Access Tier Breakdown
All 9 census tracts in Avoyelles Parish, grouped by USDA classification (see "How the USDA defines low-access and food-desert tracts" above for what each tier means).
Avoyelles Parish vs. other Louisiana counties
Share of the population living in low-access areas, compared with other counties in Louisiana
- Avoyelles Parish 20.5
Avoyelles Parish, LA
20.5 % low-access
- Acadia Parish 6.6
Acadia Parish, LA
6.6 % low-access
- Allen Parish
Allen Parish, LA
28.1 % low-access
- Ascension Parish
Ascension Parish, LA
42.3 % low-access
- Assumption Parish 0.9
Assumption Parish, LA
0.9 % low-access
- Beauregard Parish
Beauregard Parish, LA
55.8 % low-access
Food Access (USDA FARA 2019)
| Indicator | Value |
|---|---|
| Census Tracts | 9 |
| Atlas Population (2010 basis) | 42,073 |
| Low-Access Tracts | 3 |
| Food-Desert Tracts (low-income & low-access) | 2 |
| Low-Access Population | 8,645 |
| Low-Access Share | 20.5%near the national average |
| Low-Income & Low-Access Population | 4,866 |
Demographics & Assistance (Census ACS 2024)
| Indicator | Value |
|---|---|
| Population | 38,905 |
| Median Household Income | $39,325 |
| Poverty Rate | 27.8%well above the national average |
| SNAP Households | 4,032 |
| SNAP Participation Rate | 27.9%well above the national average |
| Households Without a Vehicle | 9.8%above the national average |
| Group-Quarters Population | 7.1% |
About 27.9% of Avoyelles Parish households receive SNAP, versus a U.S. county median in the 11–13% range (Census ACS).
What this means
- 20.5% of residents are low-access, above the national share for U.S. counties.
- 27.9% of households receive SNAP, the federal program that offsets food costs for 4,032 households here.
- 9.8% of households have no vehicle, the hidden multiplier that turns distance into a real barrier.
- 2 tracts meet the USDA food-desert threshold (low-income and low-access).
USDA low-access figures reflect the 2019 Atlas (2010 tract populations); socioeconomic context is the latest Census ACS 5-year (2024).
What the food-access data shows for Avoyelles Parish
above the national share
2 of Avoyelles Parish's 9 census tracts are USDA-designated food deserts, low-income areas where many residents also live far from a supermarket, about 22.2% of all its tracts.
A further 1 tract is low-access but not low-income, bringing the total low-access tract count to 3.
An estimated 8,645 residents, roughly 20.5% of the county's 2010 population, live in one of these low-access areas.
Of those, 4,866 are also low-income, the group most exposed to genuine food hardship, since limited transportation compounds a limited budget.
The remaining 6 tracts (66.7%) meet the USDA's adequate-access threshold.
SNAP retailers in Avoyelles Parish
Avoyelles Parish has 56 stores currently authorized to accept SNAP (EBT) benefits, across 9 store categories. Combination Grocery/Other lead with 20 locations (36% of the total), followed by convenience store.
Combination Grocery/Other · 20
- cvs pharmacy inc 5306, marksville
- dollar general 0773, simmesport
- dollar general 18810, marksville
- dollar general 4499, bunkie
- dollar general 6083, mansura
- dollar general 7587, cottonport
- dollar general 9629, hessmer
- dollar tree 2733, mansura
- dollar general 12158, center point
- dollar general 12276, marksville
- dollar general 12429, moreauville
- dollar general 21365, plaucheville
- dollar general 24040, marksville
- dollar general 25286, bunkie
- dollar general 649, marksville
- family dollar 13696, simmesport
- family dollar 5221, mansura
- family dollar 941, marksville
- family dollar store 707, bunkie
- walgreens 11830, marksville
Convenience Store · 16
- apm bunkie, bunkie
- chicken palace, mansura
- cotton corner 500, cottonport
- lil u pick it, hessmer
- murphy usa 7045, mansura
- nix supermarket, marksville
- odells grccery, marksville
- pilot travel center 1105, bunkie
- shawn's supercenter 3, marksville
- short stop convenience store, bunkie
- simmesport quickstop, simmesport
- tiger trax, marksville
- y not stop mansura 1000, mansura
- y not stop marksville 200, marksville
- y not stop moreauville 1040, moreauville
- y not stop simmesport 600, simmesport
Medium Grocery Store · 8
- bordelon's superette 2, plaucheville
- durand's food store, mansura
- lil quickie, marksville
- shawn's supercenter, hessmer
- shawn's supercenter 2, moreauville
- shawn's supercenter 4, cottonport
- t-jims grocery and market, cottonport
- tjs meats, marksville
Small Grocery Store · 3
- bernard's one stop seafood, cottonport
- cooyon's, llc, plaucheville
- country store, hessmer
Super Store · 3
- harvest foods, marksville
- piggly wiggly, bunkie
- walmart 1128, mansura
Meat/Poultry Specialty · 2
- big johns meat market, marksville
- juneau's cajun specialty meats, l.l.c, mansura
Seafood Specialty · 2
- bernards crawfish pad, marksville
- bordelon's fish market 1, mansura
Fruits/Veg Specialty · 1
- palace farmers market, bunkie
Supermarket · 1
- piggly wiggly simmesport llc, simmesport
Source: USDA SNAP Retailer Locator, currently authorized retailers.
Other Counties in Louisiana
Compare Avoyelles Parish vs Acadia Parish → · All Louisiana counties →
Food access nationally, Louisiana in context
Avoyelles Parish sits inside Louisiana (ringed). Each state is colored by its population-weighted low-access share; click any state to compare.
USDA Economic Research Service, Food Access Research Atlas (2019), population-weighted · Census ACS 2024 context
Understand the Data
Frequently Asked Questions
What share of Avoyelles Parish has low food access? ▼
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Is Avoyelles Parish a food desert? ▼
What share of Avoyelles Parish households lack a vehicle? ▼
Data Sources & Methodology
USDA Economic Research Service, Food Access Research Atlas (2019): low-access and food-desert tract classifications, low-access population, and low-income low-access counts. ers.usda.gov/food-access-research-atlas
U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey, 2024 5-Year Estimates: population, median income, poverty, SNAP participation, vehicle access, and group quarters. census.gov/programs-surveys/acs
Low access is defined as living more than 1 mile (urban) or 10 miles (rural) from the nearest supermarket; a food desert adds a low-income condition. Read the full methodology →
Data current as of (most recent source-data vintage; figures reflect the 2019 USDA Atlas and 2024 Census ACS).
Note: This page presents public USDA and Census data for informational purposes and is not professional advice. Figures reflect the cited dataset vintages and may differ from the most recent local conditions. How this data is sourced & verified.