After the Questa Market shuttered its doors eight months ago, the Questa Supermarket has reopened with a full makeover, including a rebrand to its name, the Sangre de Cristo Valley Market. Business owner and grandson of the original owners Dominick Apodoca says his first month has exceeded expectations.

While the opening day was pushed back from the original November 11 date, November 29 was met with much anticipation. On that morning, the parking lot was packed with cars full of people waiting to see the results of the renovation. Community members were greeted with coffee and Frito pies.

Twelve miles from De Market Food Store in Red River, Twenty-four miles from Smith’s Grocery in Taos and 39 miles from the San Luis Peoples Market in Colorado, the SDC Valley Market is essential to food security for people throughout northern Taos County. While new owner Apodoca’s main supplier at this time is Affiliated Foods Inc. out of Amarillo, Texas, he has ambitions to deal with local farmers and cattle grazers to support our local economy.

Ironically, food insecurity often plagues areas of the country that are most important to the food industry as a whole. Many rural villages and towns lack a variety of food retailers, resulting in food deserts. Data from the U. S. Department of Agriculture reports an estimated 12 percent of American households with food insecurity in 2022, an increase from 10 percent in 2020. Food deserts represent a paradoxical flaw of modernity, to be simultaneously surrounded by excess while lacking basic necessities. Local food sources in the form of farms and retail markets are critical for food security.