USDA report shows highest level of U.S. food insecurity since report initiated in 1995; UN conference held on combating international hunger; Casey launches statewide “Witnesses to Hunger” exhibit
WASHINGTON, DC- As the USDA released new data showing that one in seven American households had difficulty in putting enough food on the table and the World Summit on Food Security convened in Rome, U.S. Senator Bob Casey (D-PA) addressed the urgent need to address food insecurity at home and abroad. Senator Casey also launched a statewide Witnesses to Hunger exhibit to document hunger and poverty.
“Evidence continues to mount that hunger and food insecurity are growing problems in the United States and around the world,” said Senator Casey. “As Americans continue to struggle with the effects of the recession, 49 million Americans had trouble putting food on the table last year. And 16.7 million children lived in food insecure households – almost a quarter of all children. Globally, one in six go hungry.”
Senator Bob Casey (D-PA) and his wife, Mrs. Terese Casey, today in Scranton launched a tour across Pennsylvania for the exhibit Witnesses to Hunger, a photography project documenting hunger and poverty in Philadelphia. This project began at Drexel University in Philadelphia with 40 women capturing their daily struggle with hunger with digital cameras. The project has been expanded to women in Scranton and will continue to expand to capture the universal struggle with hunger.
Senator Casey applauded the World Summit on Food Security currently being hosted in Rome by the United Nation’s Food and Agriculture Organization in an effort to forge a broad consensus on the eradication of hunger.
Senator Casey continued:
“The timing of this conference is critical – the UN recently announced that one billion people, one-sixth of the world’s population, goes hungry. This is unacceptable. In addition to providing food aid, we must do more to invest in agriculture in developing countries so that farmers have the capability to produce locally.
“Participating countries have agreed to support substantial increases in assistance to agriculture.
“While I am glad that the Summit reaffirmed its pledge to half hunger by 2015, I hope that future summits will consider adopting 2025 as the year in which hunger is eradicated. We have a moral obligation to address this issue with newfound urgency.
“I have signed the UN’s petition to end hunger and hope that this week’s Summit will reinvigorate our efforts in the Senate to pass food security legislation.
“Senator Lugar, a respected leader is this field for decades, and I joined to introduce the Global Food Security Act earlier this year. Our bill has three major objectives:
“First, this bill will provide for enhanced coordination within the U.S. government so that USAID, the Agriculture Department, and other involved entities are not working at cross-purposes.
“Second, it will expand U.S. investment in the agricultural productivity of developing nations, so that nations facing escalating food prices can rely less on emergency food assistance and instead take the steps to expand their own crop production. Every dollar invested in agricultural research and development generates nine dollars worth of food in the developing world. This provision can serve as the vehicle for the President’s pledge to more than double the U.S. agricultural development assistance over the next three years.
“Third, it will modernize our system of emergency food assistance so that it is more flexible and can provide aid on short notice. We do that by authorizing a new $500 million fund for U.S. emergency food assistance when appropriate.”
###
