County food-access profile · Tennessee
Hamblen County, TN
Hamblen 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.
- 42.7%
- low-access pop.
- 6
- food-desert tracts
- 14.0%
- on SNAP
- 66K
- residents (ACS 2024)
The food-access picture
42.7% of Hamblen County residents live in a low-access area, and 6 of its 12 census tracts are USDA-designated food deserts.
- 9
- low-access tracts
- 9K
- food-desert residents
- 4.9%
- households, no vehicle
- 18.4%
- 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).
Hamblen County carries one of the more serious food-access burdens the USDA Atlas tracks: its low-access share of 42.7% is well above the national share. 9 of the county's 12 census tracts fall into that category, areas where residents live far from a supermarket, covering about 26,680 people. 6 of those also meet the low-income condition that defines a food desert, home to roughly 9,093 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 Hamblen County compares nationally
Hamblen County sits among the nation's most food-access-constrained counties: its 42.7% low-access share outpaces 90% of the 3,133 U.S. counties with USDA data, ranking #327 most-affected nationwide.
Hamblen County: USDA Food-Access Tier Breakdown
All 12 census tracts in Hamblen County, grouped by USDA classification (see "How the USDA defines low-access and food-desert tracts" above for what each tier means).
Hamblen County vs. other Tennessee counties
Share of the population living in low-access areas, compared with other counties in Tennessee
- Hamblen
Hamblen County, TN
42.7 % 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 | 12 |
| Atlas Population (2010 basis) | 62,544 |
| Low-Access Tracts | 9 |
| Food-Desert Tracts (low-income & low-access) | 6 |
| Low-Access Population | 26,680 |
| Low-Access Share | 42.7%well above the national average |
| Low-Income & Low-Access Population | 9,093 |
Demographics & Assistance (Census ACS 2024)
| Indicator | Value |
|---|---|
| Population | 65,669 |
| Median Household Income | $55,454 |
| Poverty Rate | 18.4%above the national average |
| SNAP Households | 3,650 |
| SNAP Participation Rate | 14.0%above the national average |
| Households Without a Vehicle | 4.9%well below the national average |
| Group-Quarters Population | 0.9% |
About 14.0% of Hamblen County households receive SNAP, versus a U.S. county median in the 11–13% range (Census ACS).
What this means
- 42.7% of residents are low-access, well above the national share for U.S. counties.
- 14.0% of households receive SNAP, the federal program that offsets food costs for 3,650 households here.
- 4.9% of households have no vehicle, the hidden multiplier that turns distance into a real barrier.
- 6 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 Hamblen County
well above the national share
6 of Hamblen County's 12 census tracts are USDA-designated food deserts, low-income areas where many residents also live far from a supermarket, about 50.0% of all its tracts.
A further 3 tracts are low-access but not low-income, bringing the total low-access tract count to 9.
An estimated 26,680 residents, roughly 42.7% of the county's 2010 population, live in one of these low-access areas.
Of those, 9,093 are also low-income, the group most exposed to genuine food hardship, since limited transportation compounds a limited budget.
The remaining 3 tracts (25.0%) meet the USDA's adequate-access threshold.
SNAP retailers in Hamblen County
Hamblen County has 85 stores currently authorized to accept SNAP (EBT) benefits, across 6 store categories. Convenience Store lead with 48 locations (56% of the total), followed by combination grocery/other.
Convenience Store · 48
- 11 east stop and shop, russellville
- carrolls grocery 1, talbott
- casey's 4607, morristown
- casey's general store 4227, morristown
- cherokee market, morristown
- cherokee market #2, morristown
- county stop market, whitesburg
- family market 2, morristown
- fastop market 209, morristown
- fastop market 227, morristown
- fastop markets 205, morristown
- fastop markets 206, morristown
- fastop markets 207, morristown
- fastop markets 208, morristown
- flowers bakery outlet 519, talbott
- food center #1, morristown
- food city gas & go 3607, morristown
- happy food mart, morristown
- ian's market # 99, morristown
- kenny's market & deli #3, morristown
- kidwell ridge bp market, morristown
- kriyan, morristown
- lee's food mart 115, morristown
- lex market #3, whitesburg
- lex market #4, morristown
- little dandy market, morristown
- mp shell, morristown
- murphy usa 6710, morristown
- nicks market, morristown
- ridgewood market, morristown
- rite quick, morristown
- rite quik gas station, morristown
- roadrunner market 6078, morristown
- roadrunner market 6080, morristown
- shree madhav inc, morristown
- shreeji food mart, morristown
- stop n go, morristown
- super marathon, morristown
- tj n liberty market, morristown
- whitesburg market, whitesburg
- way 2 morristown #1, morristown
- weigel's 1065, morristown
- weigel's 1068, morristown
- weigel's 81, morristown
- weigels 1098, morristown
- weigels 1117, morristown
- zoomerz 957, morristown
- zoomerz 963, morristown
Combination Grocery/Other · 21
- big lots 3160, morristown
- cvs pharmacy 3727, morristown
- cvs pharmacy 7226, morristown
- dollar general 11192, russellville
- dollar general 2523, morristown
- dollar general 8487, morristown
- dollar general 965, morristown
- dollar general 13520, morristown
- dollar general 14719, talbott
- dollar general 20195, whitesburg
- dollar general 24356, morristown
- dollar general 24955, morristown
- dollar general 25906, morristown
- dollar general store 16767, morristown
- dollar tree 5504, morristown
- dollar tree 933, morristown
- family dollar store 2791, morristown
- family dollar store 3037, morristown
- walgreens 6788, morristown
- walgreens 11813, morristown
- walgreens 12858, morristown
Supermarket · 7
- aldi 70009 70009, morristown
- food city 602, morristown
- food city 607, morristown
- food city 646, morristown
- ingles markets 313, morristown
- ingles markets 85, morristown
- price less foods 473, morristown
Small Grocery Store · 5
- morris convenience store, morristown
- tienda dona rosa 1, morristown
- tienda ramos, morristown
- tortilleria familiar, morristown
- west side market, morristown
Super Store · 3
- walmart neighborhood market 5467, morristown
- walmart supercenter 6370, morristown
- walmart supercenter 685, morristown
Medium Grocery Store · 1
- tienda la primavera, morristown
Source: USDA SNAP Retailer Locator, currently authorized retailers.
Other Counties in Tennessee
Compare Hamblen County vs Anderson County → · All Tennessee counties →
Food access nationally, Tennessee in context
Hamblen 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 Hamblen County has low food access? ▼
What is the SNAP participation rate in Hamblen County? ▼
What is the poverty rate in Hamblen County? ▼
Is Hamblen County a food desert? ▼
What share of Hamblen 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.