Grocery Store Deserts Continue as a Concern

According to North Dakota State University Extension, North Dakota has 90 grocery stores, down from 137 in 2014.

Jodi Bruns, leadership and civic engagement specialist with NDSU Extension, noted that 90% of North Dakota’s communities have a population of fewer than 2,000 people.

The North Dakota Association of Rural Electric Cooperatives is helping a group of rural grocery stores in the Minot area work together on purchases to decrease costs. It has identified a building in Velva to use as a distribution hub with a walk-in freezer that has been donated.

Ellen Huber, rural development director for the group, said it is similar to a project in Walsh County, where several rural stores are buying as a group and benefiting from a distribution center in Park River. By purchasing as a group, the stores have reduced their wholesale prices by 16% to 17% on average, Huber said.