Bay Shore Deli joins CCE Suffolk's Healthy Corner Store Project 

A corner store in Bay Shore is trying to help promote healthy eating habits in its community by making fresh fruits, vegetables, bottled water and low fat dairy more accessible and enticing.

On Tuesday, the Bay Shore Deli joined the Healthy Corner Store Project run by Cornell Cooperative Extension of Suffolk County (CCE Suffolk), which aims to improve access to quality food in underserved communities and spur families to make more health-conscious choices.

The deli at 60 Redington St. became the seventh corner store to sign on to CCE Suffolk's initiative, which launched in 2015. The project is backed by the U.S. Department of Agriculture's federally funded Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program Education, or SNAP-Ed.

"We're really excited to be here in Bay Shore to support our neighborhood and having healthy options when they go to their local stores," Vanessa Lockel, CCE Suffolk's executive director, said.

Lockel pointed out new signage throughout the store promoting recipes for salads and displays featuring nourishing beverages, changes aimed at encouraging healthy food purchases.

"We want to make it accessible to reach for water quickly when you walk in, or to see fruits and vegetables as an option that you can pick," Lockel said. "It really is just accentuating the healthy options that the store has and really promoting that."

The deli held an open house on Tuesday, where community members received $10 coupons for healthy food products and had the opportunity to try samples.

Marta Blanco, lead bilingual nutritionist with CCE Suffolk, said  it works with health care provider Northwell Health to select communities for the program and distribute the coupons.

Scenquetta Dixon, CCE Suffolk's community nutrition educator, has been going to the deli for 20 years. She says the store's atmosphere was a key reason why it was chosen for the initiative. 

"Every time that I've come here, they've been very open and welcoming, and I've just seen the rapport that they have with all of the community members," Dixon said. "When it was time to choose a store, this was the first one that came into my mind."

Dixon says many members of the community shop for groceries at the deli, because of its convenient location and because it accepts Electronic Benefits Transfer (EBT) payments for those receiving SNAP benefits.

"This corner store is pretty much their main supermarket," she said. "So to have them offer some fruits and vegetables is very important."

Irene Macyk, executive director at South Shore University Hospital, emphasized how beneficial eating habits are crucial for long term health.

"When you select healthier, nonprocessed foods, you're likely to be healthier for the long run," she said. "When we look at our hospitals today, we're overrun with patients in there with heart failure, diabetes and congestive heart failure."