Dollar stores are the fastest-growing food retailer in the United States by both sheer number of stores and consumer food expenditure share. However, recent research finds the dollar store environment lacks fresh produce and comprises largely unhealthy food options and foods purchased in dollar stores are generally less healthy compared to other food retailers. CSPI conducted the first national survey of consumer use and perceptions of dollar stores and found that community members strongly supported increasing healthy food and beverage options at dollar stores.

Dollar store chains tout expanding fresh produce availability, but currently dollar store websites do not allow consumers to easily discern which dollar store locations offer fresh produce. To fill this gap, CSPI commissioned research to scrape dollar store location data and whether each location offers fresh produce to create a map of national dollar store fresh produce availability. The Dollar Store Produce Availability Map shows Dollar General and Family Dollar locations, the two largest dollar store chains explicitly offering a fresh produce store format, and which locations stock fresh produce.

You can use the Dollar Store Produce Availability Map zoom function to look at dollar store location and fresh fruit and vegetable availability in your community as well as filter by zip code, store chain, and fresh produce availability.

Dollar General and Family Dollar can make identifying fresh fruit and vegetable availability easier for consumers by integrating filters with up-to-date information on which stores stock fresh produce on their websites. And researchers can hold dollar store chains accountable by evaluating dollar store food environments, assessing the true availability and quality of fresh fruits and vegetables.