BILOXI — For the last 15 years, most of East Biloxi has been considered a food desert. That means long drives for those with a car — and a walk to the nearest gas station or dollar store for those without. 

“They have a bunch of Walmart locations all on the other side of Biloxi,” said one Hoxie Street resident. “Over here, it’s literally quicker if you go to a whole different city just to get to a Walmart.” 

With no major supermarkets nearby, many residents rely on gas stations or dollar stores for groceries — or drive 20 to 30 minutes to reach the nearest store. 

Now, a group of locals is working to change that. A community-led cooperative called Biloxi Fresh Market aims to open a neighborhood-owned grocery store to bring affordable, fresh food back to East Biloxi. 

A food desert in plain sight 

Despite being part of Mississippi’s fourth-largest city, East Biloxi meets the federal definition of a food desert — a low-income area where a significant number of people live more than a mile from a supermarket and have limited access to healthy food. 

Before Hurricane Katrina destroyed 80% of the peninsula, residents say grocery stores were easy to find. 

“Every neighborhood had one,” said former resident Danny Wright, who now lives in North Biloxi. “They had one two blocks over. If you go up to Howard Avenue here, two blocks over too. It’s just an empty lot now.” 

Those businesses never returned, and by 2010 the U.S. Department of Agriculture officially designated the area a food desert. 

“Everybody around here just goes to the Dollar General,” said a Hoxie Street resident. “You can’t buy fruits and vegetables there like you can at a Walmart.” 

For people without a car, even gas-station groceries require a walk. 

“I know a few people in this neighborhood alone that will have to walk, even to the gas station, just to get things,” added another Hoxie Street resident. “We need something around here other than casinos.” 

Building a community-owned solution 

In 2019, Jeff Moore Jr. launched Biloxi Fresh Market, a cooperative grocery project owned and operated by residents. 

Over the last six years,134 people have paid $100 each to become member-owners. The group, previously called the East Biloxi Food Market, is now focused on fundraising and finding a location.  

“Under the cooperative, we have our local people, and we buy from the local farmers and other makers in the area — people that can’t afford a storefront,” Moore said. “We have access to a place to sell their wares or what have you.” 

For residents like Hugo Zaldbia, the co-op means access to fruit and vegetables that don’t come out of a can. 

“Everything fresh is better, of course. For me, freshly sowed fruit will always be better,” Zaldbia said. “Supporting local farmers — all through the state of Mississippi and closer to Biloxi — it would be better.”

Keeping dollars close to home 

The co-op model, Moore said, is designed to keep wealth circulating in the community.  

“For every dollar spent in the co-op, $1.65 stays in the local economy,” he said. “That’s through hiring local people, buying from local farmers and keeping the money here.” 

Moore said the next milestone is to reach 300 members, so they’ll have enough funding to conduct a new market study and confirm financial feasibility. His long-term goal is to grow beyond 1,000 members — which would generate more than $100,000 in startup funding. 

While the cooperative continues its work, residents across East Biloxi say their message is the same: they want a place nearby to buy fresh food. 

“We need (a grocery store) very, very badly,” Wright said. “We still got a lot of people to live down here.”