The Reis Meat Market at 375 Alden Street was visited on January 13, 2010 as part of a survey of nearly 100 neighborhood markets in Fall River during the week of January 8 through 15, 2010. The project was designed to to improve the nutritional value of the foods offered in these stores, especially the availability of fruits, vegetables and whole grain products over the next few years. A group of eight volunteers took part in the survey following a training session at the UMass Professional Learning Center on South Main Street. Results from the survey will help in planning future interventions designed by the Fall River Mass In Motion project. Mass In Motion, an initiative to combat obesity and the chronic diseases that result from overweight and lack of physical exercise privately funded by the state’s largest insurance carriers. For more information about the project, contact Mass In Motion coordinator Julie Kelly at 508-324-2405.  

(Top row, left) Diabetes Association Adult Program Coordinator John Quintas and Community Health Worker Grace Diaz enter Reis Market on Alden Street. (Top row, center and right) Store owner Tony Ventura advertises home-grown vegetables year around along with an ample supply of fresh fruits and vegetables, many of which are purchased by the Portuguese clientele in the neighborhood. (Middle row, left) After speaking with Mr. Ventura, John and Grace begin the survey of the store using a standardized survey format. (Middle row, right) John talks with Tony's mother, Leonor, who took over the fifty-year-old market six years ago. (Bottom row, left and right) John and Grace are impressed with the extensive supply of healthy food items available at the store which participates in the USDA Supplemental Nutrition (SNAP) Assistance Program ("food stamps") and accepts the EBT credit card. (Bottom row, center) Some of the vegetables that Tony sells grow in the garden right behind his store.