Fresh vegetables, fruits and other produce will soon be available from a mobile market that will travel to areas of the city that lack healthy grocery store options.
The City Council on Tuesday is expected to approve a vendor for the program, Aqua Crop of Sherman Oaks, to implement a new Mobile Healthy Food Market.
The company will outfit an electric golf-cart-style vehicle that will travel to West, Central and North Long Beach four days a week to increase access to healthy and affordable food.
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The markets will operate for two hours at two different sites per day, with a morning and afternoon set-up in each location, according to the city.
“Actual hours will be developed based on the highest potential utilization at selected sites,” according to the city staff report.
It is not yet clear where precisely the markets will be located and when they will begin.
The $630,000 contract to Aqua Crop will be funded through the Long Beach Recovery Act, which identified $1.3 million for a Nutrition Security Initiative.
The one-year contract will run through the end of 2024, with the option to renew one-year contracts for up to three years based on performance and additional funds.