BUFFALO, N.Y. — When the mass shooting happened at the Jefferson Avenue Tops in Buffalo in 2022, it brought to light another issue: A food desert in the city.
It was during that time when Western New York saw an influx of politicians on the East Side of Buffalo talking about food deserts. The fact that there is only one grocery store in the area on Jefferson Avenue is something residents living nearby say needs to change.
In June of 2022, 2 On Your Side's Claudine Ewing asked U.S. Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand, while she was in town, if now is the time to call for more than one supermarket on the East Side.
This was her answer then: "I agree with you, and I think we should be calling on all the different supermarket chains to consider putting a new supermarket in our community. I will do that and make calls to see if we can get more than one supermarket chain to come here."
There still isn't another supermarket in the area, so on Wednesday, Ewing had a chance to ask the senator about her comment and and what effort, if any, she is making on this issue that impacts a large inner city community.
"With elevated food costs and an uptick in participation in the program, WIC (Women, Infants & Children program) is facing an urgent funding shortfall," Gillibrand said. "In a nation that claims to value the health and safety of our infants, women and children, families should never be going hungry. Denying mothers and newborns food assistance is just cruel."