The USDA has debuted a nifty new tool that uses food consumption data to create color coded maps — the USDA Food Environment Atlas. Sound dry? Only if you don't like competition. Start selecting a few variables and you can instantly see how your region stacks up against the rest of the country. For instance, the Gulf Coast of Florida doesn't fare well when it comes to per capita fruit and vegetable consumption. Not as bad as most Southern states, but pretty darn close. No worries, we do a lot better when it comes to sweet snack and soda consumption. Milk prices are high here, however.
Play around with it yourself, but here are a few of the most interesting maps:
