County food-access profile · Tennessee
Sullivan County, TN
Distance to a supermarket is a real obstacle for a meaningful share of Sullivan County residents. This profile covers who qualifies as a food desert here and the income, SNAP, and vehicle-access context behind it, from the USDA Food Access Research Atlas (2019) and the Census ACS (2024).
- 30.7%
- low-access pop.
- 7
- food-desert tracts
- 13.1%
- on SNAP
- 161K
- residents (ACS 2024)
The food-access picture
30.7% of Sullivan County residents live in a low-access area, and 7 of its 39 census tracts are USDA-designated food deserts.
- 17
- low-access tracts
- 17K
- food-desert residents
- 4.8%
- households, no vehicle
- 15.4%
- 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).
USDA data puts Sullivan County's low-access share at 30.7%, above the national share. 17 of the county's 39 census tracts are classified low-access, meaning residents there live far from a supermarket, an area covering about 48,164 people. 7 of those also meet the low-income condition that defines a food desert, home to roughly 17,484 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
Relative to the 3,133 U.S. counties with USDA food-access data, Sullivan County's 30.7% low-access share is elevated, higher than 71% of them and ranked #896 most-affected nationwide.
Sullivan County: USDA Food-Access Tier Breakdown
All 39 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 Tennessee counties
Share of the population living in low-access areas, compared with other counties in Tennessee
- Sullivan
Sullivan County, TN
30.7 % low-access
- Anderson 10.9
Anderson County, TN
10.9 % low-access
- Bedford
Bedford County, TN
23 % low-access
- Benton
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 | 39 |
| Atlas Population (2010 basis) | 156,823 |
| Low-Access Tracts | 17 |
| Food-Desert Tracts (low-income & low-access) | 7 |
| Low-Access Population | 48,164 |
| Low-Access Share | 30.7%above the national average |
| Low-Income & Low-Access Population | 17,484 |
Demographics & Assistance (Census ACS 2024)
| Indicator | Value |
|---|---|
| Population | 160,624 |
| Median Household Income | $58,807 |
| Poverty Rate | 15.4%near the national average |
| SNAP Households | 9,053 |
| SNAP Participation Rate | 13.1%near the national average |
| Households Without a Vehicle | 4.8%well below the national average |
| Group-Quarters Population | 1.5% |
About 13.1% of Sullivan County households receive SNAP, versus a U.S. county median in the 11–13% range (Census ACS).
What this means
- 30.7% of residents are low-access, above the national share for U.S. counties.
- 13.1% of households receive SNAP, the federal program that offsets food costs for 9,053 households here.
- 4.8% of households have no vehicle, the hidden multiplier that turns distance into a real barrier.
- 7 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
above the national share
7 of Sullivan County's 39 census tracts are USDA-designated food deserts, low-income areas where many residents also live far from a supermarket, about 17.9% of all its tracts.
A further 10 tracts are low-access but not low-income, bringing the total low-access tract count to 17.
An estimated 48,164 residents, roughly 30.7% of the county's 2010 population, live in one of these low-access areas.
Of those, 17,484 are also low-income, the group most exposed to genuine food hardship, since limited transportation compounds a limited budget.
The remaining 22 tracts (56.4%) meet the USDA's adequate-access threshold.
SNAP retailers in Sullivan County
Sullivan County has 154 stores currently authorized to accept SNAP (EBT) benefits, across 7 store categories. Convenience Store lead with 79 locations (51% of the total), followed by combination grocery/other.
Convenience Store · 79
- andys market, kingsport
- b mart, kingsport
- beer & tobacco outlet, kingsport
- black diamond 14, blountville
- black diamond markets 11, piney flats
- bloomingdale market, kingsport
- bluff city market, bluff city
- c&s big orange market, bristol
- carl's food mart, bristol
- fas mart 469, kingsport
- fas mart 471, bristol
- food city gas & go 3622, bristol
- gas pedal, kingsport
- ian's market # 132, kingsport
- ian's market # 133, kingsport
- ian's market # 134, kingsport
- ian's market # 135, kingsport
- ian's market # 136, kingsport
- ian's market # 137, kingsport
- ian's market # 138, kingsport
- ian's market # 139, kingsport
- ian's market # 165, bristol
- ian's market # 167, bristol
- ian's market #121, bristol
- j b market n/a, kingsport
- jaini market n/a, kingsport
- jay food mart, kingsport
- kenjo 17, kingsport
- kings mart, bristol
- kingsport pit stop, kingsport
- kwik mart, bristol
- l a mart, bristol
- m & m market 1, kingsport
- midfield market, kingsport
- murphy express 8651, kingsport
- murphy usa 6696, kingsport
- murphy usa 6971, bristol
- on the way market, bristol
- peoples food store, kingsport
- pit row market, llc, bluff city
- quick stop foodmart, bristol
- quick stop market 34, bristol
- quick stop market 35, bristol
- quick stop market 42, bristol
- redi mart 20 20, kingsport
- roadrunner 6009, kingsport
- roadrunner market 6001, bristol
- roadrunner market 6010, kingsport
- roadrunner market 6021, blountville
- roadrunner market 6025, kingsport
- roadrunner market 6027, bluff city
- roadrunner market 6044, kingsport
- roadrunner market 6045, kingsport
- roadrunner market 6046, bluff city
- roadrunner market 6054, kingsport
- roadrunner market 6065, piney flats
- roadrunner market 6082, blountville
- roadrunner market 6083, bristol
- rock spring mart, kingsport
- scotchman 3402, bristol
- scotchman 3406, blountville
- scotchman 3408, kingsport
- scotchman 3414, bluff city
- shakshi inc, kingsport
- shiv711 llc n/a, kingsport
- the perfect stop, kingsport
- the savvy shopper, kingsport
- tri city wholesale tobacco 7, kingsport
- village food market, blountville
- village food mart and more, bristol
- weaver market, bristol
- weigel's 1095, bristol
- weigels 1093, kingsport
- weigels 1094, kingsport
- weigels 1097, piney flats
- weigels 1116, bristol
- zoomerz 965, kingsport
- zoomerz 969, kingsport
- zoomerz 980, kingsport
Combination Grocery/Other · 50
- asian market, kingsport
- big lots 3158, kingsport
- cvs pharmacy 3726, bristol
- cvs pharmacy 4130, kingsport
- cvs pharmacy 4240, kingsport
- cvs pharmacy 5664, kingsport
- cvs pharmacy 7714, bristol
- dollar general 18401, kingsport
- dollar general 2267, kingsport
- dollar general 2464, bristol
- dollar general 2638, kingsport
- dollar general 3497, kingsport
- dollar general 3504, blountville
- dollar general 3533, kingsport
- dollar general 3599, kingsport
- dollar general 7898, kingsport
- dollartree 10872, kingsport
- dollartree 6203, piney flats
- dollartree 7234, bristol
- dollar general 11276, bluff city
- dollar general 11858, bristol
- dollar general 14708, bristol
- dollar general 15223, piney flats
- dollar general 15236, bluff city
- dollar general 15318, blountville
- dollar general 15752, bristol
- dollar general 15895, kingsport
- dollar general 16553, bluff city
- dollar general 17436, bristol
- dollar general 20758, blountville
- dollar general 21499, kingsport
- dollar general 22649, kingsport
- dollar general 22789, kingsport
- dollar general 25938, kingsport
- dollar general 30449, bristol
- dollar tree 1336, kingsport
- dollar tree 1926, kingsport
- dollar tree 3108, bristol
- dollar tree 334, kingsport
- dollar tree 8352, blountville
- family dollar 8778, bristol
- family dollar store 1986, kingsport
- walgreen 05347, bristol
- walgreen 05597, kingsport
- walgreen 05828, kingsport
- walgreens 09306, colonial heights
- walgreens 09428, kingsport
- walgreens 10192, bristol
- walgreens 10330, blountville
- walgreens 12934, kingsport
Supermarket · 12
- aldi sby 67, kingsport
- food city 605, kingsport
- food city 617, bristol
- food city 622, bristol
- food city 664, kingsport
- food city 669, blountville
- food city 657, kingsport
- food city 699, piney flats
- grocery outlet 21, kingsport
- ingles markets 72, kingsport
- price less foods 478, kingsport
- price less foods 487, kingsport
Super Store · 7
- dollar general market 14751, kingsport
- kroger store 328, kingsport
- target store t-2332, kingsport
- walmart 599, kingsport
- walmart neighborhood market 5734, kingsport
- walmart store 620, bristol
- walmart supercenter 742, kingsport
Meat/Poultry Specialty · 3
- kpc butcher shop, kingsport
- lazy j farms butcher shop, kingsport
- the butcher's block llc, blountville
Farmers' Market · 2
- city of kingsport tennessee, kingsport
- state street farmer's market, bristol
Large Grocery Store · 1
- mccoy's salvage grocery, kingsport
Source: USDA SNAP Retailer Locator, currently authorized retailers.
Other Counties in Tennessee
Compare Sullivan County vs Anderson County → · All Tennessee counties →
Food access nationally, Tennessee in context
Sullivan 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 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.