County food-access profile · New York
Sullivan County, NY
Most of Sullivan County sits within reach of a supermarket, better than most U.S. counties. This profile covers who, if anyone, qualifies as a food desert here, plus the income, SNAP, and vehicle-access context from the USDA Food Access Research Atlas (2019) and the Census ACS (2024).
- 4.6%
- low-access pop.
- 2
- food-desert tracts
- 17.1%
- on SNAP
- 80K
- residents (ACS 2024)
The food-access picture
4.6% of Sullivan County residents live in a low-access area, and 2 of its 24 census tracts are USDA-designated food deserts.
- 2
- low-access tracts
- 2K
- food-desert residents
- 8.6%
- households, no vehicle
- 15.9%
- 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).
By the USDA's measure, Sullivan County fares better than most: just 4.6% of residents live in a low-access tract, below the national share. Still, 2 of the county's 24 tracts meet that threshold, covering about 3,605 people who live far from a supermarket, and 2 of those also meet the low-income condition that defines a food desert, home to roughly 2,207 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 Sullivan County compares nationally
Food access in Sullivan County compares favorably nationally: its 4.6% low-access share is lower than the vast majority of the 3,133 U.S. counties with USDA data, higher than only 10% of them (rank #2,834).
Sullivan County: USDA Food-Access Tier Breakdown
All 24 census tracts in Sullivan County, grouped by USDA classification (see "How the USDA defines low-access and food-desert tracts" above for what each tier means).
Sullivan County vs. other New York counties
Share of the population living in low-access areas, compared with other counties in New York
- Sullivan 4.6
Sullivan County, NY
4.6 % low-access
- Albany
Albany County, NY
31.4 % low-access
- Allegany 3.9
Allegany County, NY
3.9 % low-access
- Bronx 0.6
Bronx County, NY
0.6 % low-access
- Broome
Broome County, NY
16.4 % low-access
- Cattaraugus 7.9
Cattaraugus County, NY
7.9 % low-access
Food Access (USDA FARA 2019)
| Indicator | Value |
|---|---|
| Census Tracts | 24 |
| Atlas Population (2010 basis) | 77,547 |
| Low-Access Tracts | 2 |
| Food-Desert Tracts (low-income & low-access) | 2 |
| Low-Access Population | 3,605 |
| Low-Access Share | 4.6%well below the national average |
| Low-Income & Low-Access Population | 2,207 |
Demographics & Assistance (Census ACS 2024)
| Indicator | Value |
|---|---|
| Population | 79,721 |
| Median Household Income | $72,382 |
| Poverty Rate | 15.9%above the national average |
| SNAP Households | 5,383 |
| SNAP Participation Rate | 17.1%above the national average |
| Households Without a Vehicle | 8.6%near the national average |
| Group-Quarters Population | 5.9% |
About 17.1% of Sullivan County households receive SNAP, versus a U.S. county median in the 11–13% range (Census ACS).
What this means
- 4.6% of residents are low-access, below the national share for U.S. counties.
- 17.1% of households receive SNAP, the federal program that offsets food costs for 5,383 households here.
- 8.6% of households have no vehicle, the hidden multiplier that turns distance into a real barrier.
- 2 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 Sullivan County
below the national share
2 of Sullivan County's 24 census tracts are USDA-designated food deserts, low-income areas where many residents also live far from a supermarket, about 8.3% of all its tracts.
An estimated 3,605 residents, roughly 4.6% of the county's 2010 population, live in one of these low-access areas.
Of those, 2,207 are also low-income, the group most exposed to genuine food hardship, since limited transportation compounds a limited budget.
The remaining 22 tracts (91.7%) meet the USDA's adequate-access threshold.
SNAP retailers in Sullivan County
Sullivan County has 121 stores currently authorized to accept SNAP (EBT) benefits, across 13 store categories. Convenience Store lead with 43 locations (36% of the total), followed by combination grocery/other.
Convenience Store · 43
- barrons grocery, fallsburg
- bloomingburg mobil, bloomingburg
- brother's bodega, monticello
- express mobil mart inc no, monticello
- fallsburg food corp/quick mart, south fallsburg
- green valley market 9292157777, loch sheldrake
- heinles general store, cochecton
- j & h express swan lake, swan lake
- j&h express, liberty, liberty
- jeffersonville country store 26, jeffersonville
- krish food mart inc, livingston manor
- latinos super market, south fallsburg
- liberty country store 20, liberty
- liberty deli & grill 1 inc, monticello
- liberty quick mart inc, liberty
- livingston manor country store 3, livingston manor
- loch sheldrake food mart inc, loch sheldrake
- mobil, monticello
- mobil mart, monticello
- mobil mart, monticello
- mobil mini mart, wurtsboro
- monticello quick mart, monticello
- neelkanth mart inc, hurleyville
- neeta inc - country store (sunoco) 4, monticello
- north branch food mart inc, north branch
- nosso posto, inc, neversink
- om sai mart inc, ferndale
- pete's country store, glen spey
- punjabi food mart inc., bloomingburg
- rahi food corp/j & h express mart, youngsville
- route 42 fuel corp, monticello
- roxbury country store 29, roxbury
- shriji mart inc, rock hill
- sonal food corp/citgo food, woodbourne
- south fallsburgh food mart inc, south fallsburg
- sri sir inc, liberty
- star market llc, callicoon
- stewart's shops 376, wurtsboro
- stewarts shop 288, monticello
- stewarts shop 307, fallsburg
- ultra power corp, monticello
- woodridge supermarket, woodridge
- zoya petrolium corp, monticello
Combination Grocery/Other · 23
- dollar general 14321, white lake
- dollar general 18717, neversink
- dollar tree 1051, liberty
- dollar tree 2593, monticello
- dollar general 14958, fallsburg
- dollar general 15110, wurtsboro
- dollar general 15815, jeffersonville
- dollar general 15950, eldred
- dollar general 16890, rock hill
- dollar general 20156, bloomingburg
- dollar general 20891, white sulphur springs
- dollar general 25453, monticello
- dollar general 30596, cochecton
- dollar general 6295, liberty
- dollar general store 16523, livingston manor
- family dollar store 2614, monticello
- family dollar store 5034, liberty
- lous produce llc, monticello
- rock hill trading post 2262, rock hill
- roscoe supermarket, roscoe
- satmar meat, south fallsburg
- walgreens 17736, monticello
- walgreens 19811, liberty
Supermarket · 13
- aldi 73056, monticello
- buy rite kosher supermarket inc, woodridge
- concord food plaza inc, liberty
- honeydew supermarket, woodridge
- langenour swan lake supermarket dba tyberg's count, swan lake
- mountain kosher food corp, monticello
- maple ave.discount inc - motty's supermarket, white lake
- narrowsburg supermarket corp/pete's market, narrowsburg
- shloimy & moshe inc/ landau's supermarket, south fallsburg
- shoprite 227, monticello
- shoprite 263, liberty
- skopps supermarket inc, fallsburg
- wurtsboro g-mart, wurtsboro
Medium Grocery Store · 11
- catskill kosher centre inc, kiamesha lake
- catskill kosher express n/a, kiamesha lake
- goldmans grocery llc, monticello
- har nof grocery inc, kiamesha lake
- international deli, liberty
- main street farm, livingston manor
- r & az foods inc/woodbourne supermarket, woodbourne
- star food supermarket, bloomingburg
- sullivan county quality meats llc, monticello
- sunflower kosher market, monticello
- usamex s&a llc, south fallsburg
Meat/Poultry Specialty · 6
- butcher boys of sullivan co #2, monticello
- central yetev lev s'samar meat, woodbourne
- satmar meats, bloomingburg
- satmar meats, monticello
- satmar meats, woodbourne
- satmar meats- boosur, monticello
Super Store · 6
- gourmet glatt, kiamesha lake
- pecks market of callicoon 617, callicoon
- pecks market of eldred 618, eldred
- pecks market of jeffersonville 616, jeffersonville
- pecks market of livingston manor 615, livingston manor
- walmart supercenter 2547, monticello
Large Grocery Store · 5
- buy rite supermarket, woodridge
- food circle ltd, woodbourne
- greenfresh supermarket inc, monticello
- kb kosher food inc, liberty
- yagdil corp, fallsburg
Farmers' Market · 4
- callicoon farmers market, jeffersonville
- liberty farmers' market, liberty
- rock hill farmers market, rock hill
- sullivan fresh farmers market at monticello, monticello
Bakery Specialty · 3
- catskills bakery corp, monticello
- monticello kosher bakery, monticello
- roger that microbakery, callicoon
Delivery Route · 2
- pelleh poultry corp, swan lake
- sullivan fresh market on the move, liberty
Fruits/Veg Specialty · 2
- fare haven farmacy, livingston manor
- schreibers market, monticello
Small Grocery Store · 2
- latinos super market 352719099, liberty
- mesivta sanz, kauneonga lake
Seafood Specialty · 1
- kosher atlantic, south fallsburg
Source: USDA SNAP Retailer Locator, currently authorized retailers.
Other Counties in New York
Compare Sullivan County vs Albany County → · All New York counties →
Food access nationally, New York in context
Sullivan County sits inside New York (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 Sullivan County has low food access? ▼
What is the SNAP participation rate in Sullivan County? ▼
What is the poverty rate in Sullivan County? ▼
Is Sullivan County a food desert? ▼
What share of Sullivan 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.