President Obama on Hunger
“My top priority is making sure that people are able to get enough to eat.”
When he was a child, Barack Obama’s mother briefly received food stamps to put food on the table when she needed help. As a result, President Obama understands firsthand that federal nutrition and food assistance programs play a key role in minimizing the harmful effects of poverty and improving the diets of low-income working families, especially children.
The Obama Administration has developed an anti-hunger plan that commits to ending childhood hunger by 2015. With rising unemployment and higher food prices, existing benefits and programs are not enough—and more than 35.5 million Americans, including 12.6 million children, face a constant struggle against hunger.
The Obama anti-hunger plan includes:
The need is critical and time is of the essence!
You can help ensure Members of Congress hear this vital message today by calling 866-548-0332 to speak with your Senators at no cost to you. Please call today and urge them to include sufficient funding for anti-hunger programs in the Economic Recovery Package!
- Support for the provisions of the 2008 Farm Bill that improved the Food Stamp Program (Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program/SNAP).
- Increased funding for emergency food assistance and expanded availability of fresh fruits and vegetables in schools with significant numbers of low-income children.
- Streamlined program rules and enrollment processes to make it easier for low-income seniors to get both the nutrition and health coverage they need.
- Continued efforts to produce a strong Child Nutrition and WIC Reauthorization Bill that better meets the needs of America’s children and pregnant women.
- Plans to jump-start the economy and reduce poverty, such as providing permanent tax relief for working families.
- Support for programs offering solutions to child hunger that occur after school, on weekends, and during the summer.
Feeding America is excited to work with President Obama in making this plan a reality.
The first step is to ensure that funding for hunger relief and emergency food programs is included in the Economic Recovery Package that Congress will deliberate in the next few days. Government-funded emergency food assistance commodities are essential for food banks, soup kitchens, and food pantries, and for the hungry families they serve. These funds are especially vital in this economic crisis, when food banks nationwide are averaging a 30% increase in demand for food assistance. It is extremely important that the Senate Appropriations Committee include $300 million for The Emergency Food Assistance Program and $30 million for the Commodity Supplemental Food Program.
Pound for Pound Challenge
The Biggest Loser Challenges You to Help Feed America!
Join The Biggest Loser, General Mills, and Feeding America in the Pound for Pound Challenge, and help feed hungry Americans! Beginning in January, The Biggest Loser invites viewers to race to the finish in an effort to secure millions of pounds of groceries for local food banks.
How does it work? There are three ways you can help—pledge, mail, or donate.
- Pledge: For every pound you lose, General Mills will donate 10¢ to Feeding America— enough to provide one pound of groceries to a local food bank. They will donate up to $500,000, with a guaranteed $100,000 minimum donation.
- Mail: Participating General Mills products will feature Pound for Pound Challenge Seals—just clip them out and mail them in. Pound for Pound Seals will be featured on millions of General Mills packages. For every seal received by December 31, 2009, General Mills will donate 10¢ to Feeding America—up to $275,000.
- Donate: You can make a huge difference by supporting The Biggest Loser and General Mills in the Pound for Pound Challenge. And you can do even more—make your individual contribution to Feeding America and join the fight to end hunger in America!
Click here to learn more about The Biggest Loser’s Pound for Pound Challenge.
And don’t forget to watch The Biggest Loser on Tuesdays on NBC. Be sure to tune in to the season finale on May 12, 2009, to see how many pounds America lost as part of the Challenge—and how those pounds will help Feeding America fight hunger across the country!
Legislative Update: A Look Back at 2008
…And a Look Ahead to 2009
2008 was a great legislative year for those of us involved in the fight against hunger.
In May, the House and Senate overrode President Bush’s veto and passed the Farm Bill—a significant victory for the more than 35 million Americans facing food insecurity today. The Farm Bill increased funding for Emergency Food Assistance Programs and implemented programmatic improvements to the Food Stamp Program (now known as the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program). Thousands of Feeding America advocates wrote letters and called their Members of Congress in support of the Farm Bill. The result was $10 billion in new funding over the next 10 years for critical federal nutrition programs which has been absolutely critical in light of the weakened economy and rising prices for basic necessities.
In the fall, Congress also passed a tax incentive package with the first Economic Stimulus Package. This important tax incentive helps fight hunger by allowing businesses to deduct the cost of food they donate to hunger-relief charities.
Feeding America applauds the House and Senate for their support of hunger-related initiatives.
There are some big issues coming up in 2009 that Hunger Advocates will want to be watching!
2009 Economic Recovery Package
In the upcoming days and weeks, Congress will deliberate another Economic Recovery Package. Funding for emergency food assistance programs must be included. Feeding America is specifically asking that Congress dedicate $300 million for The Emergency Food Assistance Program and $30 million for the Commodity Supplemental Food Program.
Time is critical!
It is most urgent that our Members of Congress hear the voices of concerned Hunger Advocates across the country asking them to support hunger-relief funding in the Economic Recovery Package. We need your help!
Simply call 866-548-0332 to speak with both of your Senators’ offices, urging them to include sufficient funding for anti-hunger programs in the Economic Recovery Package of 2009.
Child Nutrition and WIC Reauthorization
In 2009, Congress will also review the Child Nutrition and WIC Reauthorization Act of 2004. This legislation, which will expire at the end of September, includes all the federal child nutrition programs, including the School Breakfast and National School Lunch Programs, the Summer Food Service Program (SFSP), the Child and Adult Care Food Program (CACFP), and the Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants and Children (WIC).
Watch for additional information and Action Alerts on these and other key issues
at the Hunger Action Center throughout 2009.
Philanthropy and Public Policy: The Two-pronged Strategy for Hunger Relief
When most people think of working for hunger relief, they think of philanthropy. Philanthropic efforts might include serving in a soup kitchen, making a corporate or individual financial donation, or organizing a food drive. All of these activities are important, and Feeding America supports local and national philanthropic efforts to fight hunger. However, by themselves they are not enough to effect our ultimate goal—the end of hunger in America.
Public policy is the second prong of hunger relief efforts, and its role is equally important. Government funding is critical in the fight against hunger, and, through public policy efforts, government leaders are able to focus the nation on hunger relief and bring to bear the kind of national resources that only the government can supply. Federal nutrition programs that have been established and are supported by public policy include Food Stamps, School Lunch and School Breakfast Programs, the Summer Food Service Program, and the Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC). Without these broad-scale national programs, local hunger-relief advocates would find it virtually impossible to meet even the most basic needs of hungry people.
Philanthropy and public policy complement and reinforce each other in the fight against hunger. A strong commitment to both is essential if we are to win this fight, which is why one of the most important roles of Hunger Advocates is making sure our elected officials know that we expect them to make hunger-relief a key focus of their public policy efforts, particularly now, as we face a serious economic crisis.
President Obama has pledged to establish critical public policy programs that will end childhood hunger by 2015. Fulfilling that pledge will require the support of Congress, and of individual citizens in every part of our nation. You can start by calling 866-548-0332 to speak with your elected officials, letting them know that you personally support government funding of hunger relief programs and urging them to include hunger-relief funding in the 2009 Economic Recovery Package. Feeding America will also keep you informed when other opportunities arise to help strengthen the public policy response to hunger.
Influencing public policy as a Hunger Advocate and citizen of the nation is just as important as your donations of money, time, and effort in your local community. Both play a vital role in making sure no one in America has to go hungry.
Visit the Hunger Action Center today
and let your voice be heard!
Feeding America at the Inauguration
Rally Against Hunger
On Monday, January 19, in cooperation with the Capital Area Food Bank, Feeding America kicked off the "Rally Against Hunger," part of the Obama Administration's Renew America Together campaign.
Joining us for the program were actor David Arquette, Chairman of the Feeding America Entertainment Council; actor Ben Affleck; musicians Josh Groban and Herbie Hancock; and Martin Luther King III, who ended the program with words of inspiration and wisdom. Together, he believes, we can eradicate hunger, both here and abroad.
Groban and Hancock collaborated on their own version of the John Lennon classic, "Imagine," and performed for a crowd that topped out at close to 1,500 people.
Elsewhere across the country, more than 50 Feeding America member food banks participated in the Renew America Together campaign, developing their own events in honor of Dr. King and the national day of service. We want to thank all of our Hunger Advocates who participated in the Renew America Together campaign and helped make hunger relief a priority in our nation’s capital and throughout the country.
YouTube Contest Winner: “A Day in the Life of a Can”
As part of the Renew America Together national day of service, the Presidential Inauguration Committee hosted a YouTube video contest. Individuals and organizations created three-minute YouTube videos designed to tell the story of serving their community on Martin Luther King Day. The winning video was used during the Inaugural activities, and the creator received a personal phone call from First Lady Michelle Obama.
We are proud to announce that the winning video, “A Day in the Life of a Can,” was created by the Second Harvest Food Bank of Middle Tennessee!
Congratulations Second Harvest Food Bank of Middle Tennessee!
Click here to view the winning video.
Feeding America / RIAA Inaugural Charity Ball
On Tuesday evening, January 20, David Arquette and his wife, actress Courteney Cox-Arquette, hosted the Feeding America/Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) Inaugural Charity Ball, which included a performance by pop music sensation Rhianna.
Among the celebrities who stopped by were Leonardo DiCaprio, Tobey Maguire, Cher, Kanye West, Brandon Routh, Shakira, Rosanna Arquette, Sara Gore, Josh Groban, and Herbie Hancock.
Both events garnered major national visibility, with coverage in USA Today and live coverage by ABC News and CNN from the event's red carpet. The press coverage that resulted helped raise awareness about Feeding America and our hunger-relief efforts.