Chicora is no longer a food desert now that a Tennessee corporation has stepped in.

The borough and surrounding area found itself without a grocery store after the area's longtime sole market, Friedman's, closed in 2018.

Since then, most residents have been living on processed food available at local convenience and dollar stores or driving to Butler or Kittanning to access a grocery store.

Seeing the problem firsthand, the Dollar General corporation decided to remodel its location just south of the borough on Route 68 into a DG Market.

The location now offers fresh meat and produce at the store.

“The new DG Market format aims to provide the Chicora community with an updated design and closer access to fresh foods and a convenient location to purchase the items they want and need at everyday low prices,” said Dan Nieser, Dollar General's senior vice president of real estate and store development.

Read more in Tuesday's Butler Eagle.