Virtua Health has rolled out a new Mobile Grocery Store to help reduce food insecurity and improve access to fresh, healthy food.

The vehicle is part of a new $1.5 million, state-funded investment in Virtua’s “Eat Well” food access programs. The initiative will also include the health system’s first Mobile “Food Farmacy,” scheduled to launch this summer.

These developments represent a significant expansion of Virtua’s Eat Well programs, which also include a Mobile Farmers Market and two brick-and-mortar Food Farmacies. 

The new Eat Well Mobile Grocery Store replaces the original vehicle – a refurbished NJ Transit bus – which launched in 2021. The new, custom-designed model offers more space for customers and staff, among other improvements.

“Our original Mobile Grocery Store gave this program a fantastic start over the past four years,” said Virtua President and CEO Dennis W. Pullin, FACHE.  “Now, our new and improved vehicle will provide even greater comfort, service, and convenience for our customers and staff.”

“It’s wonderful,” said longtime customer Emma Ryan-Furlonge of Delanco, after shopping on the new vehicle for the first time. “I like the spacious part. I like the compartments—they have it like a supermarket. It’s great, it’s convenient. I can count on having fresh food every week.”

Indeed, the 40-foot van was designed specifically for its purpose, based on input from Virtua’s team and customers. For example, it has a much wider aisle (nearly doubled at 5 feet across) and more storage space for extra inventory. It also contains a semi-private, slide-out space for individual health screenings and consultations.

Prices on the Mobile Grocery Store average 40% to 50% below local retail prices. All are welcome to shop and the program accepts SNAP benefits (government food assistance).

State Senator Troy Singleton was instrumental in the growth of these vital programs, noted Pullin.

“We are grateful to Senator Singleton, who’s been a steadfast advocate for local food access,” said the CEO. “His tireless efforts resulted in essential new funding from the State of New Jersey, which enabled this expansion of Virtua’s Eat Well programs to even more area residents. 

“Good food is essential to good health. But many South Jerseyans have difficulty obtaining healthy items, whether it’s due to cost, lack of transportation, or other barriers,” Pullin explained. “Our new Eat Well Mobile Grocery Store will continue Virtua’s tradition of building healthy communities while reaching more people, enhancing shoppers’ experience, and ideally improving quality of life for many of our neighbors.” 

“Programs like Virtua’s Mobile Grocery Store are a lifeline for families facing food insecurity—and the numbers speak for themselves,” said Senator Singleton. “With more than 7,500 transactions last year, this initiative is not only working, it’s transforming lives. I was proud to secure $1.5 million in funding for two new vehicles, which will bring accessible, affordable, healthy food options directly to our communities.”

The Mobile Grocery Store already has a strong record of success. For example, 94% of customers report increased fruit and vegetable consumption and 88% report they prepare more nutritious meals because of the Mobile Grocery Store. It total, Virtua’s Eat Well programs completed more than 47,000 transactions last year – an 8.6% increase over 2023.

The need for such programs is clear: An estimated 15% of Camden County residents and 12% of Burlington County residents do not know where their next meal will come from, according to Feeding America.

Funding of $1.5 million from the State of New Jersey went toward the purchase of the two new vehicles (at $500,000 each) and upcoming renovations to Eat Well’s distribution center, as well as food inventory and staff support. Since 2017, Virtua’s philanthropic partners have invested $10 million in the Eat Well food-access programs, helping ensure a reliable, consistent operation that meets the needs of its community.

The programs also take care to stock culturally relevant food, recognizing the tastes and preferences of each community they visit. “We want everyone to have an outstanding experience with us, so it’s essential that our customers feel seen, respected, and understood,” said Debra Moran, MS, senior vice president of health equity and community programs for Virtua.

Free Support Services on Board

With a focus on overall well-being, the Mobile Grocery Store also provides a variety of added support, including free nutrition education and consultations, and monthly blood-pressure, blood sugar, and cholesterol screenings. Dietetic graduate students from Rowan University provide one-on-one nutrition education at every stop from September through May.

Moreover, community health workers (CHWs) are available to consult with customers on social issues and refer them to free and low-cost community resources.

For example, if a patron is having trouble paying their electric bill, or if they need job training or clothing, a CHW can tap into Community Connection (an online directory) to help them find the assistance they need.

Up to 80% of a person’s health is shaped by social factors such as access to nutritious food, safe housing, education, and economic stability, according to the National Academy of Medicine.

“As South Jersey’s largest health system, we’re looking to address as many of these needs as we can,” said CEO Pullin. “This helps us to close the disparity gaps in health access and health outcomes.”

The program stops at the same sites at the same times each week, so customers can rely on it and the staff can build supportive relationships with shoppers. Locations are in Camden (two stops), Cherry Hill, Delanco, Palmyra, Sicklerville, and Willingboro. For more information, including schedules for Virtua’s Mobile Grocery Store and Mobile Farmers Market, visit Virtua.org/EatWell.

Coming Soon: A Mobile Food Farmacy

The planned Eat Well Mobile Food Farmacy will be a traveling version of Virtua’s brick-and-mortar Food Farmacies in Camden and Mount Holly. It will initially stop at Virtua Primary Care offices in Hammonton (Atlantic County) and Washington Township (Gloucester County).

The Food Farmacy program serves people referred by their Virtua primary care provider due to both food insecurity and a chronic disease, such as diabetes, high blood pressure, or heart disease. The Mobile Food Farmacy will provide the same services as the brick-and-mortar sites, including medical nutrition therapy (a form of nutrition counseling) and free groceries that are “medically tailored” for the patient’s individual health needs. Staff members also connect patients with social support resources. Each patient is enrolled in the program for six months.

“The Mobile Food Farmacy will eliminate transportation barriers for people who live far from our existing locations,” said Moran. “We will soon be able to bring a Food Farmacy to them! That’s what it means to meet people where they are.”

Indeed, Virtua’s unique health fleet goes beyond the walls of its hospitals and medical offices to deliver care directly into neighborhoods where it is most needed.

Virtua’s health fleet launched in 2017 with the year-round Eat Well Mobile Farmers Market. Today, Virtua’s mobile programs also include two Pediatric Mobile Services vehicles, which provide free health screenings, flu vaccines, and other services, and Virtua’s Mobile Health & Cancer Screening Unit, which offers breast, cervical, colorectal, and prostate cancer screenings, among other services.