A South Los Angeles neighborhood will soon have one less option for fresh produce. Grocery chain Fresh & Easy is preparing to close its store on Central and Adams Boulevards in South LA, in addition to 29 of its other locations in Southern California.
The University Park location, on Figueroa Street and Jefferson Boulevard, will remain open.
Fresh & Easy spokesman Brendan Wolcott says the locations are being closed because they “do not meet the criteria of Fresh & Easy’s model of modern convenience.”
Shoppers who frequent the South LA location were disappointed their preferred grocer will no longer be available to serve their needs.
“I go to Fresh and Easy, especially this location, all the time I’m really disappointed that they’re closing,” said shopper, Nancy Nelson. “It’s a really big let-down.”
South LA is a known food desert—an area where grocery stores providing healthy foods are few and far between and where smaller local markets often increase prices. Residents are thus left to choose between purchasing less nutritional alternatives, paying inflated prices, or expanding their shopping radius.
“I go to Fresh and Easy every day to get my food for my breakfast and my dinner,” one shopper said. “I will have to travel farther to get my food for every day meals.”
This location opened in February of 2010 with great enthusiasm and a line of patrons stretching around the block for the grand opening.
For a list of other Fresh and Easy locations slated to close, click here.
For a map of farmers markets in South LA, click here.
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