What does this research mean for the field?

The interaction between food environments and urban gentrification shapes uneven food access through four primary mechanisms: symbolic displacement, economic exclusion, racialized commodification, and community resistance. Novelty: ClaimNovelty.SYNTHESIS. Consensus alignment: ConsensusAlignment.NEUTRAL.

What question did this study set out to answer?

Synthesize empirical and theoretical research examining how gentrification alters urban food environments and shapes food access across diverse demographic groups.

September 14, 2026Urban StudiesOpen Access

Gentrification and foodscapes: An integrative review of neighborhood change and food access

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Authors

HAHilary Ama AnsahTexas State University YLYongmei LuTexas State University

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Implication

Integrative review uncovers mechanisms of altered food access across gentrifying urban neighborhoods, highlighting the need to protect community agency and retail affordability.

Key Points

Synthesize empirical and theoretical research examining how gentrification alters urban food environments and shapes food access across diverse demographic groups.
Purposive integrative review synthesizing theoretical and empirical studies on food environments and gentrification published since 2000.
Identified and screened 1,353 records, selecting 40 eligible studies through a multi-stage review guided by a realist Context–Mechanism–Outcome framework.
Identified four recurring pathways linking retail shifts to gentrification: symbolic displacement, economic exclusion, racialized commodification, and community resistance.
Symbolic displacement manifests when upscale food venues signal incoming demographic shifts prior to physical relocation, while economic exclusion systematically prices out long-term residents through inflated living and food costs.
Community resistance initiatives—such as ethnic markets and consumer cooperatives—mitigate food insecurity but can inadvertently stimulate further gentrification by attracting affluent newcomers.

Cite This Study

Ansah et al. (2026) studied this question.

synapsesocial.com/papers/6aa7b3ee0926e14a848b3371 https://doi.org/10.1177/00420980261477575

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Implication

Integrative review uncovers mechanisms of altered food access across gentrifying urban neighborhoods, highlighting the need to protect community agency and retail affordability.

Gentrification and foodscapes: An integrative review of neighborhood change and food access

Discussion

Member takes

Implication

Key Points

Cite This Study

Gentrification and foodscapes: An integrative review of neighborhood change and food access

Discussion

Member takes

Implication

Key Points

Cite This Study

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