PlainFoodAccess

County food-access profile · North Carolina

Nash County, NC

Nash 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.

17.7%
low-access pop.
1
food-desert tracts
18.3%
on SNAP
96K
residents (ACS 2024)
USDA FARA 2019 Census ACS 2024 NC

The food-access picture

17.7% of Nash County residents live in a low-access area, and 1 of its 18 census tracts are USDA-designated food deserts.

7
low-access tracts
5K
food-desert residents
6.9%
households, no vehicle
11.8%
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).

Nash County's low-access share sits near the national share, at 17.7% per the USDA Atlas. 7 of the county's 18 census tracts are flagged low-access, covering roughly 17,003 residents who live far from a supermarket. 1 of those also meet the low-income condition that defines a food desert, home to roughly 5,234 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 Nash County compares nationally

Nash County lands in the middle of the national distribution: a 17.7% low-access share that beats 40% of the 3,133 U.S. counties with USDA data (rank #1,895).

lower low-accesshigher low-access

Nash County: USDA Food-Access Tier Breakdown

All 18 census tracts in Nash County, grouped by USDA classification (see "How the USDA defines low-access and food-desert tracts" above for what each tier means).

Food access tier distribution for Nash County, NC USDA-defined food-access tiers: 11 census tracts adequate (within distance threshold), 6 limited, 1 severe (low-income low-access food desert). Total 18 tracts evaluated. 11 tracts adequate (61.1%) 6 tracts limited (33.3%) 1 tracts severe / food desert (5.6%) Adequate 61% Limited 33% Severe 6% Food-access tier distribution: Nash County, NC
Source: USDA Economic Research Service, Food Access Research Atlas 2019

Nash County vs. other North Carolina counties

Share of the population living in low-access areas, compared with other counties in North Carolina

% low-access
Source USDA Economic Research Service, Food Access Research Atlas As of 2019 edition

Food Access (USDA FARA 2019)

USDA Food Access Research Atlas 2019 indicators for Nash County
IndicatorValue
Census Tracts18
Atlas Population (2010 basis)95,840
Low-Access Tracts7
Food-Desert Tracts (low-income & low-access)1
Low-Access Population17,003
Low-Access Share17.7%below the national average
Low-Income & Low-Access Population5,234

Demographics & Assistance (Census ACS 2024)

Census ACS 2024 demographic and SNAP data for Nash County
IndicatorValue
Population96,216
Median Household Income$62,426
Poverty Rate11.8%below the national average
SNAP Households7,087
SNAP Participation Rate18.3%well above the national average
Households Without a Vehicle6.9%below the national average
Group-Quarters Population1.8%
SNAP participation in Nash County 18.3%

About 18.3% of Nash County households receive SNAP, versus a U.S. county median in the 11–13% range (Census ACS).

What this means

  • 17.7% of residents are low-access, near the national share for U.S. counties.
  • 18.3% of households receive SNAP, the federal program that offsets food costs for 7,087 households here.
  • 6.9% of households have no vehicle, the hidden multiplier that turns distance into a real barrier.
  • 1 tract 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 Nash County

near the national share

1 of Nash County's 18 census tracts are USDA-designated food deserts, low-income areas where many residents also live far from a supermarket, about 5.6% of all its tracts.

A further 6 tracts are low-access but not low-income, bringing the total low-access tract count to 7.

An estimated 17,003 residents, roughly 17.7% of the county's 2010 population, live in one of these low-access areas.

Of those, 5,234 are also low-income, the group most exposed to genuine food hardship, since limited transportation compounds a limited budget.

The remaining 11 tracts (61.1%) meet the USDA's adequate-access threshold.

SNAP retailers in Nash County

Nash County has 118 stores currently authorized to accept SNAP (EBT) benefits, across 7 store categories. Convenience Store lead with 53 locations (45% of the total), followed by combination grocery/other.

Convenience Store · 53

  • 7-eleven 41939h, rocky mount
  • a&a food mart, rocky mount
  • bailey tobacco grill & pizza llc, bailey
  • bi rite market 8 llc 8, rocky mount
  • bradberry grocery inc., nashville
  • circle k 2701513, rocky mount
  • circle k 2723079, rocky mount
  • circle k 2723085, rocky mount
  • circle k 2723087, rocky mount
  • circle k 2723096, rocky mount
  • circle k 2723106, rocky mount
  • duck thru 60, spring hope
  • ez stop, nashville
  • ep mart #8, battleboro
  • ep mart 11, rocky mount
  • ep mart 14, rocky mount
  • ep mart 16, rocky mount
  • ep mart 4, battleboro
  • ep mart 5, rocky mount
  • flowers bakery outlet 1065, rocky mount
  • food mart 2, rocky mount
  • gold rock food mart, rocky mount
  • grab n go mart 01, battleboro
  • griffins food store 6, red oak
  • hilliardston grocery, nashville
  • j and a convenient and tobacco, rocky mount
  • journigan food store #1, whitakers
  • l&m minimart 3, sharpsburg
  • mart 231, middlesex
  • metro mart convenience store, rocky mount
  • midway family mart, rocky mount
  • murphy express 8502, nashville
  • murphy usa 8772, rocky mount
  • rose mart 17316, nashville
  • rose mart 17352, castalia
  • rose mart 17364, nashville
  • rose mart 17397, nashville
  • sharpsburg friendly mart 2529724504, sharpsburg
  • sheetz 447, rocky mount
  • sheetz 504, rocky mount
  • sheetz 623, nashville
  • south side grocery, rocky mount
  • speedway 6981, rocky mount
  • speedway 7959, rocky mount
  • speedway 8665, rocky mount
  • speedway 8667, rocky mount
  • speedway 8675, sharpsburg
  • sunset avenue food mart, rocky mount
  • tar river grill & pizza inc tar river, rocky mount
  • turner mini mart 3, rocky mount
  • wawa store 6101, rocky mount
  • wesleyan family fare 456, rocky mount
  • west mount one stop llc, rocky mount

Combination Grocery/Other · 40

  • cvs pharmacy 4988, nashville
  • cvs pharmacy 7330, rocky mount
  • cvs pharmacy 3973, rocky mount
  • dollar general 18169, rocky mount
  • dollar general 3992, spring hope
  • dollar general 4791, nashville
  • dollar general 4945, sharpsburg
  • dollar general 7667, rocky mount
  • dollar general 7874, rocky mount
  • dollar general 9445, rocky mount
  • dollar general 9454, rocky mount
  • dollar general 9490, bailey
  • dollar tree 1132, rocky mount
  • dollartree 10474, rocky mount
  • dollartree 9742, spring hope
  • dollar general 10444, red oak
  • dollar general 11247, middlesex
  • dollar general 11764, rocky mount
  • dollar general 12149, rocky mount
  • dollar general 13156, rocky mount
  • dollar general 20655, nashville
  • dollar general 20995, spring hope
  • dollar general 22295, rocky mount
  • dollar general 23207, castalia
  • dollar general 23949, middlesex
  • dollar general 25196, rocky mount
  • dollar general 25434, rocky mount
  • dollar general 30959, rocky mount
  • dollar tree 6767, nashville
  • dollar tree 7591, rocky mount
  • dollartree plus 9081, rocky mount
  • family dollar 10414, rocky mount
  • family dollar 8215, rocky mount
  • family dollar 9031, whitakers
  • family dollar store 7486, castalia
  • walgreens 07548, rocky mount
  • walgreens 11667, rocky mount
  • walgreens 16164, nashville
  • walgreens 19865, rocky mount
  • williams foods, rocky mount

Super Store · 10

  • fred's food club - rocky mount, rocky mount
  • harris teeter 063, rocky mount
  • p/w of nashville, inc. 87, nashville
  • piggly wiggly 67, rocky mount
  • piggly wiggly 68, rocky mount
  • sb smith & son inc, rocky mount
  • sam's club 4946, rocky mount
  • target store t-962, rocky mount
  • walmart supercenter 1197, rocky mount
  • walmart supercenter 4459, nashville

Supermarket · 8

  • aldi 80037 80037, rocky mount
  • food lion 1461, spring hope
  • food lion 1566, nashville
  • food lion 237, rocky mount
  • food lion 2574, rocky mount
  • food lion 857, rocky mount
  • piggly wiggly 06, bailey
  • piggly wiggly bailey 6, bailey

Farmers' Market · 3

  • nash county farmers market, rocky mount
  • nashville farmers market, nashville
  • solomons farm, rocky mount

Medium Grocery Store · 3

  • hondu mex butcher shop, rocky mount
  • la unica meat market inc, middlesex
  • sharpsburg grocery, sharpsburg

Fruits/Veg Specialty · 1

  • bushels & blooms, spring hope

Source: USDA SNAP Retailer Locator, currently authorized retailers.

Other Counties in North Carolina

Alamance County
25.0% low-access · 13.6% SNAP
Alexander County
20.4% low-access · 13.5% SNAP
Alleghany County
4.3% low-access · 14.0% SNAP
Anson County
8.4% low-access · 33.8% SNAP
Ashe County
22.2% low-access · 14.0% SNAP
Avery County
0.3% low-access · 13.9% SNAP

Compare Nash County vs Alamance County → · All North Carolina counties →

Food access nationally, North Carolina in context

Nash County sits inside North Carolina (ringed). Each state is colored by its population-weighted low-access share; click any state to compare.

AK 31 ME 13 VT 11 NH 28 WA 23 ID 26 MT 22 ND 29 MN 27 IL 20 WI 21 MI 23 NY 12 RI 24 MA 28 OR 17 NV 23 WY 30 SD 29 IA 20 IN 29 OH 25 PA 21 NJ 24 CT - CA 13 UT 24 CO 22 NE 22 MO 25 KY 20 WV 21 VA 20 MD 23 DE 27 AZ 27 NM 32 KS 26 AR 25 TN 27 NC 23 SC 29 DC 5 OK 25 LA 26 MS 26 AL 25 GA 31 HI 27 TX 25 FL 25

USDA Economic Research Service, Food Access Research Atlas (2019), population-weighted · Census ACS 2024 context

Understand the Data

Frequently Asked Questions

What share of Nash County has low food access? ▼
17.7% of residents in Nash County, NC live in low-access areas, more than 1 mile (urban) or 10 miles (rural) from the nearest supermarket, per the USDA Food Access Research Atlas (2019).
What is the SNAP participation rate in Nash County? ▼
18.3% of households in Nash County receive SNAP, covering 7,087 households (Census ACS 2024 5-year estimates).
What is the poverty rate in Nash County? ▼
The poverty rate in Nash County, NC is 11.8%, with a median household income of $62,426 (Census ACS 2024).
Is Nash County a food desert? ▼
1 of Nash County's 18 census tracts meet the USDA food-desert threshold (low-income and low-access). Food deserts are designated at the tract level, so conditions can vary within the county.
What share of Nash County households lack a vehicle? ▼
6.9% of households in Nash County have no vehicle available (Census ACS 2024), which compounds any distance to a supermarket.
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.