County food-access profile · Tennessee
Carter County, TN
Carter County sits among the counties with the widest food-access gaps the USDA tracks, most residents here live well outside a comfortable walk or drive to a supermarket. This profile covers who qualifies as a food desert and the income, SNAP, and vehicle-access context behind it.
- 47.0%
- low-access pop.
- 10
- food-desert tracts
- 14.3%
- on SNAP
- 57K
- residents (ACS 2024)
The food-access picture
47.0% of Carter County residents live in a low-access area, and 10 of its 17 census tracts are USDA-designated food deserts.
- 11
- low-access tracts
- 13K
- food-desert residents
- 4.6%
- households, no vehicle
- 17.1%
- 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).
Carter County carries one of the more serious food-access burdens the USDA Atlas tracks: its low-access share of 47.0% is well above the national share. 11 of the county's 17 census tracts fall into that category, areas where residents live far from a supermarket, covering about 27,006 people. 10 of those also meet the low-income condition that defines a food desert, home to roughly 13,237 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 Carter County compares nationally
Carter County sits among the nation's most food-access-constrained counties: its 47.0% low-access share outpaces 92% of the 3,133 U.S. counties with USDA data, ranking #245 most-affected nationwide.
Carter County: USDA Food-Access Tier Breakdown
All 17 census tracts in Carter County, grouped by USDA classification (see "How the USDA defines low-access and food-desert tracts" above for what each tier means).
Carter County vs. other Tennessee counties
Share of the population living in low-access areas, compared with other counties in Tennessee
- Carter
Carter County, TN
47 % low-access
- Anderson 10.9
Anderson County, TN
10.9 % low-access
- Bedford
Bedford County, TN
23 % low-access
- Benton 12.6
Benton County, TN
12.6 % low-access
- Bledsoe 4.7
Bledsoe County, TN
4.7 % low-access
- Blount
Blount County, TN
30.1 % low-access
Food Access (USDA FARA 2019)
| Indicator | Value |
|---|---|
| Census Tracts | 17 |
| Atlas Population (2010 basis) | 57,424 |
| Low-Access Tracts | 11 |
| Food-Desert Tracts (low-income & low-access) | 10 |
| Low-Access Population | 27,006 |
| Low-Access Share | 47.0%well above the national average |
| Low-Income & Low-Access Population | 13,237 |
Demographics & Assistance (Census ACS 2024)
| Indicator | Value |
|---|---|
| Population | 56,712 |
| Median Household Income | $50,135 |
| Poverty Rate | 17.1%above the national average |
| SNAP Households | 3,483 |
| SNAP Participation Rate | 14.3%above the national average |
| Households Without a Vehicle | 4.6%well below the national average |
| Group-Quarters Population | 2.6% |
About 14.3% of Carter County households receive SNAP, versus a U.S. county median in the 11–13% range (Census ACS).
What this means
- 47.0% of residents are low-access, well above the national share for U.S. counties.
- 14.3% of households receive SNAP, the federal program that offsets food costs for 3,483 households here.
- 4.6% of households have no vehicle, the hidden multiplier that turns distance into a real barrier.
- 10 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 Carter County
well above the national share
10 of Carter County's 17 census tracts are USDA-designated food deserts, low-income areas where many residents also live far from a supermarket, about 58.8% of all its tracts.
A further 1 tract is low-access but not low-income, bringing the total low-access tract count to 11.
An estimated 27,006 residents, roughly 47.0% of the county's 2010 population, live in one of these low-access areas.
Of those, 13,237 are also low-income, the group most exposed to genuine food hardship, since limited transportation compounds a limited budget.
The remaining 6 tracts (35.3%) meet the USDA's adequate-access threshold.
SNAP retailers in Carter County
Carter County has 55 stores currently authorized to accept SNAP (EBT) benefits, across 10 store categories. Convenience Store lead with 27 locations (49% of the total), followed by combination grocery/other.
Convenience Store · 27
- captain jack's ole country store, butler
- chris foodmart, elizabethtown
- cloudland food market, roan mountain
- corner market, hampton
- fas mart 459, roan mountain
- fletcher's station, elizabethton
- food city express 3631, elizabethton
- hampton new, hampton
- hyders sunshine market 2, elizabethton
- ians market 65, elizabethton
- ians market 66, elizabethton
- j&w market 5, elizabethton
- jimmy's market #21, elizabethton
- kenjo 46, johnson city
- murphy usa 7113, elizabethton
- quick stop market 20, elizabethton
- quick stop market 28, hampton
- redi food mart 2, elizabethton
- redi mart 1 1, hampton
- redi mart 11, elizabethton
- redi mart 16, elizabethton
- roadrunner market 6022, hampton
- roadrunner market 6041, elizabethton
- scotchman 3424, roan mountain
- stateline market, elizabethton
- stateline market 2, elizabethton
- weigels 1106, elizabethton
Combination Grocery/Other · 17
- cvs pharmacy 7655, elizabethton
- dollar general 10625, roan mountain
- dollar general 11187, johnson city
- dollar general 1439, hampton
- dollar general 18582, watauga
- dollar general 3776, elizabethton
- dollar general 6804, elizabethton
- dollartree 10617, elizabethton
- dollar general 14970, elizabethton
- dollar general 18062, hampton
- dollar general 20203, butler
- dollar general 21074, johnson city
- dollar general store 446, elizabethton
- dollar tree 2303, elizabethton
- family dollar 13582, roan mountain
- family dollar 242, elizabethton
- walgreens 09429, elizabethton
Large Grocery Store · 2
- grocery outlet 34, elizabethton
- redi mart supermarket 21, hampton
Medium Grocery Store · 2
- h h market, elizabethton
- redi mart supermarket 14, roan mountain
Supermarket · 2
- food city 631, elizabethton
- ingles markets 397, elizabethton
Farmers' Market · 1
- elizabethton farmers market, elizabethton
Fruits/Veg Specialty · 1
- latham farms produce, elizabethton
Meat/Poultry Specialty · 1
- bryant beef, watauga
Small Grocery Store · 1
- lamberts produce, elizabethton
Super Store · 1
- walmart 690, elizabethton
Source: USDA SNAP Retailer Locator, currently authorized retailers.
Other Counties in Tennessee
Compare Carter County vs Anderson County → · All Tennessee counties →
Food access nationally, Tennessee in context
Carter County sits inside Tennessee (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 Carter County has low food access? ▼
What is the SNAP participation rate in Carter County? ▼
What is the poverty rate in Carter County? ▼
Is Carter County a food desert? ▼
What share of Carter County 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.