County food-access profile · Ohio
Columbiana County, OH
Columbiana County's food-access picture is close to the national norm, with pockets that qualify as low-access. This profile breaks down who qualifies as a food desert and the income, SNAP, and vehicle-access context behind it.
- 17.8%
- low-access pop.
- 3
- food-desert tracts
- 15.2%
- on SNAP
- 101K
- residents (ACS 2024)
The food-access picture
17.8% of Columbiana County residents live in a low-access area, and 3 of its 24 census tracts are USDA-designated food deserts.
- 10
- low-access tracts
- 7K
- food-desert residents
- 7.6%
- households, no vehicle
- 15.2%
- 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).
Columbiana County's low-access share sits near the national share, at 17.8% per the USDA Atlas. 10 of the county's 24 census tracts are flagged low-access, covering roughly 19,153 residents who live far from a supermarket. 3 of those also meet the low-income condition that defines a food desert, home to roughly 6,608 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 Columbiana County compares nationally
Columbiana County lands in the middle of the national distribution: a 17.8% low-access share that beats 40% of the 3,133 U.S. counties with USDA data (rank #1,885).
Columbiana County: USDA Food-Access Tier Breakdown
All 24 census tracts in Columbiana County, grouped by USDA classification (see "How the USDA defines low-access and food-desert tracts" above for what each tier means).
Columbiana County vs. other Ohio counties
Share of the population living in low-access areas, compared with other counties in Ohio
- Columbiana
Columbiana County, OH
17.8 % low-access
- Adams
Adams County, OH
22 % low-access
- Allen
Allen County, OH
17.4 % low-access
- Ashland 5
Ashland County, OH
5 % low-access
- Ashtabula
Ashtabula County, OH
21.9 % low-access
- Athens
Athens County, OH
17 % low-access
Food Access (USDA FARA 2019)
| Indicator | Value |
|---|---|
| Census Tracts | 24 |
| Atlas Population (2010 basis) | 107,841 |
| Low-Access Tracts | 10 |
| Food-Desert Tracts (low-income & low-access) | 3 |
| Low-Access Population | 19,153 |
| Low-Access Share | 17.8%below the national average |
| Low-Income & Low-Access Population | 6,608 |
Demographics & Assistance (Census ACS 2024)
| Indicator | Value |
|---|---|
| Population | 100,704 |
| Median Household Income | $58,180 |
| Poverty Rate | 15.2%near the national average |
| SNAP Households | 6,288 |
| SNAP Participation Rate | 15.2%above the national average |
| Households Without a Vehicle | 7.6%near the national average |
| Group-Quarters Population | 3.1% |
About 15.2% of Columbiana County households receive SNAP, versus a U.S. county median in the 11–13% range (Census ACS).
What this means
- 17.8% of residents are low-access, near the national share for U.S. counties.
- 15.2% of households receive SNAP, the federal program that offsets food costs for 6,288 households here.
- 7.6% of households have no vehicle, the hidden multiplier that turns distance into a real barrier.
- 3 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 Columbiana County
near the national share
3 of Columbiana County's 24 census tracts are USDA-designated food deserts, low-income areas where many residents also live far from a supermarket, about 12.5% of all its tracts.
A further 7 tracts are low-access but not low-income, bringing the total low-access tract count to 10.
An estimated 19,153 residents, roughly 17.8% of the county's 2010 population, live in one of these low-access areas.
Of those, 6,608 are also low-income, the group most exposed to genuine food hardship, since limited transportation compounds a limited budget.
The remaining 14 tracts (58.3%) meet the USDA's adequate-access threshold.
SNAP retailers in Columbiana County
Columbiana County has 114 stores currently authorized to accept SNAP (EBT) benefits, across 9 store categories. Convenience Store lead with 54 locations (47% of the total), followed by combination grocery/other.
Convenience Store · 54
- 2630 st. clair, llc, east liverpool
- 7 & 30 superette, east liverpool
- b & s country carryout, salineville
- bfs foods 86, wellsville
- bk beverage, salineville
- barnett's market, salem
- barnetts drive thru, salem
- big w drive thru, wellsville
- circle k 4705230, columbiana
- circle k 4705231, salem
- circle k 4705232, e palestine
- circle k 4705233, lisbon
- circle k 4705234, salem
- columbiana duchess 1167, columbiana
- down on main, leetonia
- gilkinson short stop, e liverpool
- glenmoor superette, east liverpool
- gorby's, e palestine
- gorby's grocery inc, negley
- glasgow carryout, wellsville
- glenmore fuel mart, east liverpool
- kendrick croner carry out 1, salem
- kings carryout, wellsville
- kings food mart, east liverpool
- leetonia market & drive thru, leetonia
- lisbon petroleum llc, lisbon
- mapco 992, salem
- murphy usa 6946, salem
- new waterford food and fuel, new waterford
- nikki's market, llc, east liverpool
- pep's carry out, wellsville
- quik mart & more, inc, lisbon
- quik mart & more, inc, columbiana
- quik mart & more, inc, columbiana
- rayl's market, east liverpool
- reb 2nd drive thru llc, east liverpool
- rich oil 3774, wellsville
- rivercity fill up, east liverpool
- s.k. market, washingtonville
- sheetz 251, east liverpool
- sheetz 909, columbiana
- smith oil #105, east liverpool
- smith oil 106 106, lisbon
- smith oil company, inc. 109, salem
- speedway 9401, salem
- steel valley gas mart, hanoverton
- suburban mart no, salem
- sunoco mini mart, leetonia
- super usa food store, salem
- tic toc food mart #206, columbiana
- thomas market, hanoverton
- uni- mart 2109, east liverpool
- uni- marts 2101, lisbon
- uni- marts oh0111, east liverpool
Combination Grocery/Other · 36
- beresford's, calcutta
- dollar general 10224, salineville
- dollar general 19403, salem
- dollar general 2410, salem
- dollar general 3049, east liverpool
- dollar general 469, east palestine
- dollar general 7041, salem
- dollar general 7227, lisbon
- dollar general 8273, east liverpool
- dollar general 8410, columbiana
- dollartree 10009, columbiana
- dollartree 10741, east palestine
- discount drug mart 88, lisbon
- dollar general 10869, east liverpool
- dollar general 12426, wellsville
- dollar general 14957, new waterford
- dollar general 16096, hanoverton
- dollar general 16232, e liverpool
- dollar general 20511, salem
- dollar general 20799, beloit
- dollar general 21790, salem
- dollar general 22289, east palestine
- dollar general 30195, kisbon
- dollar general store 12518, rogers
- dollar tree 1748, calcutta
- dollar tree 2539, salem
- dollar tree 7462, east liverpool
- family dollar 11158, leetonia
- family dollar 11968, lisbon
- family dollar 12799, salineville
- family dollar store 3124, lisbon
- family dollar store 3986, wellsville
- giant eagle, east liverpool
- pondi's market, lisbon
- village plaza sparkle, columbiana
- walgreens 09377, salem
Supermarket · 6
- aldi 69023 69023, east liverpool
- aldi 75078 75078, salem
- hull's super duper, east rochester
- marc's 48, salem
- penn sparkle, east liverpool
- save a lot wellsville 23647, wellsville
Super Store · 5
- east palestine sparkle, east palestine
- giant eagle, e liverpool
- giant eagle salem 1664, salem
- walmart 2910, salem
- walmart supercenter 1707, east liverpool
Medium Grocery Store · 4
- cook's corner llc, columbiana
- doyles fresh meat & deli, east palestine
- trickling springs country store, llc, leetonia
- vanpelts farm market, salem
Small Grocery Store · 3
- mi bandera guatemala 1, salem
- s and d foor outlet, salem
- woolf farms fruit market store, salem
Fruits/Veg Specialty · 2
- jeff's produce, lisbon
- wards market, east palestine
Large Grocery Store · 2
- columbiana market, inc. 24991, columbiana
- lisbon save-a-lot 24705, lisbon
Meat/Poultry Specialty · 2
- harstine meats, lisbon
- winona frozen foods, winona
Source: USDA SNAP Retailer Locator, currently authorized retailers.
Other Counties in Ohio
Compare Columbiana County vs Adams County → · All Ohio counties →
Food access nationally, Ohio in context
Columbiana County sits inside Ohio (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 Columbiana County has low food access? ▼
What is the SNAP participation rate in Columbiana County? ▼
What is the poverty rate in Columbiana County? ▼
Is Columbiana County a food desert? ▼
What share of Columbiana 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.