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Did you know that global hunger is worse today than it’s been in 50 years? Over 45 million children are suffering from wasting—the most visible and life-threatening form of malnutrition. That’s over seven times the population of Colorado of children who are going hungry.
While the need is great, I believe the hope can be as well when we work together. In fact, through the Farm Bill, farmers right here in Colorado are important partners in ending child hunger. The Farm Bill invests not only in local farmers and our region’s ability to continue feeding ourselves but also in ending global hunger.
For example, programs in the Farm Bill like McGovern-Dole Food for Education, use U.S.-grown produce in school lunch programs to ensure students have at least one nutritious meal per day — for many their only meal that day. Simultaneously, these programs include components that strengthen the community around the school through interventions like the construction of clean water points and new classrooms. Other programs like Food for Peace Title II tackle hunger at its roots by helping vulnerable communities learn to feed themselves and build resilient and sustainable food systems. Together, these proven programs have fed millions of children and helped thousands of communities to lift themselves out of hunger.
Now, they’re at risk because of politics and lack of understanding about the dire need. That’s why I’m headed to D.C. this week to meet with our members of Congress to discuss why these programs are so important to Colorado and to children around the world. At a time when 800 million people don’t know where their next meal will come from, we must protect and strengthen these critical programs.
