Signature · 2 LILA tracts (40% of tracts)
Bienville Parish, LA
Bienville Parish's signature pressure is desert tracts: 2 LILA tracts (40% of the book) alongside 35.6% low-access.
- 35.6%
- low-access pop.
- 2
- food-desert tracts
- 22.9%
- on SNAP
- 13K
- residents (ACS 2024)
USDA FARA access plate
County Bienville Parish, LA
LA-ELEVATED · ABOVE-NATIONAL · LILA-POCKET · SNAP-HEAVY · VEH-GAP · DENSITY-DENSE
- LA-ELEVATED 35.6% low-access
- ABOVE-NATIONAL +13.5 pts vs US
- LILA-POCKET 2 food-desert tracts
- SNAP-HEAVY 22.9% SNAP
- VEH-GAP 9.8% no vehicle
- DENSITY-DENSE 40% tracts LILA
Nearest low-access peer: St. Bernard Parish (+ 0.0 pts)
Upper-band low-access
Bienville Parish sits in the upper national band (35.6%, #566 of 3,079) with 2 LILA tracts.
- #566
- national by low-access %
- #13
- in LA
- 3
- low-access tracts
- 3K
- food-desert residents
Upper-band counties often pair elevated low-access with clustered LILA tracts. Low access = >1 mile urban / >10 miles rural.
Signature read: 2 LILA tracts (40% of tracts) .
How Bienville Parish compares nationally
Relative to the 3,133 U.S. counties with USDA food-access data, Bienville Parish's 35.6% low-access share is elevated, higher than 82% of them and ranked #566 most-affected nationwide.
Bienville Parish's elevated USDA tier split
5 census tracts grouped by USDA classification · 2 LILA.
Bienville Parish is mostly rural by USDA tract type (4 rural, 1 urban), so most tracts are held to the 10-mile test and only the 1 urban tract faces the 1-mile one.
Bienville Parish vs nearby high low-access peers
Poles + nearest peers in Louisiana, not a full county-board reprint
- Tensas
Tensas 58.9%
58.9 % low-access
- Union
Union 36.6%
36.6 % low-access
- Bienville
Bienville 35.6%
35.6 % low-access
- St. Bernard
St. Bernard 35.6%
35.6 % low-access
- Catahoula
Catahoula 35.3%
35.3 % low-access
- Caddo
Caddo 34.8%
34.8 % low-access
- Assumption 0.9
Assumption 0.9%
0.9 % low-access
FARA 2019 · elevated low-access
| Indicator | Value |
|---|---|
| Census Tracts | 5 |
| Atlas Population (2010 basis) | 14,353 |
| Low-Access Tracts | 3 |
| Food-Desert Tracts (low-income & low-access) | 2 |
| Low-Access Population | 5,116 |
| Low-Access Share | 35.6%well above the national average |
| Low-Income & Low-Access Population | 2,799 |
ACS 2024 · elevated SNAP band
| Indicator | Value |
|---|---|
| Population | 12,638 |
| Median Household Income | $35,011 |
| Poverty Rate | 29.2%well above the national average |
| SNAP Households | 1,274 |
| SNAP Participation Rate | 22.9%well above the national average |
| Households Without a Vehicle | 9.8%above the national average |
| Group-Quarters Population | 2.5% |
SNAP retailers in Bienville Parish
Bienville Parish has 18 stores currently authorized to accept SNAP (EBT) benefits, across 4 store categories. Convenience Store lead with 9 locations (50% of the total), followed by combination grocery/other.
Where the store book sits, by town
5 towns share the 18 authorized stores; Arcadia holds 39% of them. 2 of the 5 towns have no grocery-grade outlet, only convenience or dollar/combination stores: Gibsland, Saline.
| Town | SNAP stores | Grocery-grade |
|---|---|---|
| Arcadia | 7 | 1 |
| Ringgold | 4 | 1 |
| Castor | 3 | 1 |
| Gibsland | 2 | none |
| Saline | 2 | none |
Convenience Store · 9
- bistineau cornerstore and rv park, ringgold
- dixie mart 17276, arcadia
- fastpak foods, arcadia
- fastpak foods, gibsland
- pk 1 corp, arcadia
- ringgolds quick stop, ringgold
- roytown country store, castor
- super stop, arcadia
- williams & son supply company, saline
Combination Grocery/Other · 6
- dollar general 4834, arcadia
- dollar general 986, ringgold
- dollar general 24207, saline
- family dollar 12635, castor
- family dollar 13878, gibsland
- family dollar 8397, arcadia
Supermarket · 2
- brookshire food store 55, arcadia
- supervalue/iga 7432, ringgold
Medium Grocery Store · 1
- the general store, castor
Source: USDA SNAP Retailer Locator (currently authorized stores, a live third population, not the 2019 Atlas or ACS 2024 snapshot above).
Other Counties in Louisiana
One of 63 counties in Louisiana, 6 are shown here.
Compare Bienville Parish vs Acadia Parish → · All Louisiana counties →
Counties near Bienville Parish's elevated low-access or SNAP band
Two USDA/ACS-derived peer sets for Bienville Parish, both outside Louisiana so the neighborhoods are not the same-state county list above.
Similar low-access share
Nearest low-access rates outside LA (35.6% here).
- Mason County, IL · 35.6% low-access
- Dare County, NC · 35.6% low-access
- Bandera County, TX · 35.6% low-access
- Washington County, UT · 35.6% low-access
Similar SNAP participation
Nearest household SNAP rates outside LA (22.9% here).
- Kings County, NY · 22.9% SNAP
- Seminole County, OK · 22.9% SNAP
- Lewis County, KY · 22.8% SNAP
- Decatur County, GA · 22.8% SNAP
Source: USDA Food Access Research Atlas (2019) + Census ACS 2024 SNAP. Peers floor at 10,000 residents so stub counties cannot own the match.
Louisiana among West South Central states
Louisiana ranks 1st of 4 West South Central states by population-weighted low-access (26.4%). Bienville Parish, at 35.6%, runs 9.2 pts above the Louisiana rate.
Source: USDA Economic Research Service, Food Access Research Atlas (2019), population-weighted by state; divisions per the U.S. Census Bureau. National state map
Read with this county
Sources: USDA Economic Research Service, Food Access Research Atlas (2019) · U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey, 2024 5-Year Estimates · methodology · compiled .
PlainFoodAccess renders this county profile directly from the USDA Food Access Research Atlas (2019) and U.S. Census Bureau American Community Survey (2024 5-year estimates), no number is typed in by an editor. Figures for Bienville Parish, LA are computed from the joined Atlas and ACS records for FIPS 22013. See our editorial standards & corrections policy, the methodology behind these numbers, or report a data error. Data current as of 2026-06-23. Primary sources: USDA Food Access Research Atlas and Census ACS 5-year estimates.
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.