Downtown Market Grand Rapids promotes healthy lifestyles among the community

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According to the Center for Disease Control (CDC), diseases and chronic conditions such as cardiac pathologies, cancer, type 2 diabetes and arthritis are the health problems that are most expensive to treat. Ironically, they are also the ones that are most preventable in this country.

In fact, cardiac diseases are the number one cause for death in the United States among men and women; every year 610 thousand people die because of heart-related conditions.

In a country, in which during decades, poor healthy habits have been part of the lives of millions of people, information about the damages that many foods cause has been tried to be promoted among many people. High levels of sodium, sugar, and fats are some of the foods that can cause many damages that’s why promoting a healthy lifestyle is a way to prevent an early death.
Even though it has not been an easy task, in many places in the United States, there are places that promote a healthy life style through local products, that are also fresh and healthy.
One of these places is the Downtown Market Grand Rapids, that has been functioning since 2013 at 435 Ionia Ave. SW in Grand Rapids. Every year, almost a million people visit the building that is 138 thousand square feet.
According to Mimi Fritz, President and CEO of the Downtown Market, visitors come from all over the state.
“It’s not only a place that offers different types of foods such as tacos, Thai food to different types of fish. Created in different stores that exist in one place, but it’s also a place for the community”, she said.
In addition to the market, the Downtown Market Grand Rapidst also has a greenhouse to grow vegetables, offers different services to the community like cooking classes focused on healthy eating and private events like wedding, kitchen incubator that small business owners can use to start their own business, when they don’t have access to a professional kitchen. It also has two restaurants with full service and 22 produce providers in the interior of the building.
“This is a place for the community where many of the restaurants use products that are grown in the greenhouse, offering healthy food and also, local food.”
Even though is a relatively new project, the Downtown Market Grand Rapids has become a destination to buy local, fresh, and healthy food where there is a mix of production, distribution, education and marketing at learning the growth of vegetables and the importance of local fresh food.
“It’s critical that people and families that have never been here always know that this is a place for the community, where the door is open for anybody that wants to celebrate healthy eating” , said Fritz.