The Suffolk Virginia Cooperative Extension Office will kick off its Food Desert Initiative on April 23 with a documentary showing and discussion at the Hilton Garden Inn Suffolk Riverfront Hotel and Conference Center, 100 E. Constance Road.

The event will run from 6 to 8 p.m. and is free and open to the public.

The initiative is designed to identify residents for whom fresh fruits and vegetables are difficult to obtain because of their distance from a grocery store. It also aims to provide for opportunities to help improve fresh food access to them.

The event will include the showing of the “Living in a Food Desert” documentary produced by Virginia State University and Virginia Tech. A discussion and question and answer session will take place after the video.

For more information, call Marcus Williams with the Suffolk Virginia Cooperative Extension Office at 514-4332. The event is produced in partnership with the City of Suffolk, Virginia State University College of Agriculture, Virginia Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services, Healthy People Healthy Suffolk, Hampton Roads Buy Fresh Buy Local, Farm Fresh, Obici Healthcare Foundation and the Junior League of Hampton Roads.