CARE: Food Aid Must Serve the Poor

CARE has made the decision to stop participating the practice
of monetization, or the selling U.S. government food to fund
food aid and other anti-poverty programs, by 2009.

Food aid has indisputably assisted and, in many cases, saved the lives of millions of people, and it continues to be an important component of a global strategy to reduce vulnerability and food insecurity. At the same time, it is clear that many of the practices of food aid are not always compatible with our mission.

Learn More

Click on the links below to read more about food aid and CARE's decision to use food resources more effectively:

• CARE: White Paper on Food Aid Policy
• CARE Senior Technical Advisor David Kauck: Congressional Testimony
• U.S. Government Accountability Office: Foreign Assistance: Various Challenges Impede the Efficiency and Effectiveness of U.S. Food Aid

Our decision concerning federally funded food aid has generated strong opinions and media coverage across the country: Some of the links below require free registration or archive subscription.

• The New York Times: CARE Turns Down Federal Funds for Food Aid
• The New York Times Editorial: A Better Way to Feed the Hungry
• The New York Times: Letter to the Editor
• TIME: CARE Turns Down U.S. Food Aid
• The Boston Globe Editorial: The Long Hoe of Agribusiness
• The Seattle Post Intelligencer Editorial: Food Aid: Better than a Fish
• The Heritage Foundation: Charity Turns Down Federal Money
• Los Angeles Times: No Thanks, and Keep Your Farm Aid
• Marketplace (American Public Media): CARE, It Doesn't Care for Strings on U.S. Aid
• Houston Chronicle: Food for Thought: US Aid Policy Would Be Better Tied to Long-Term Global Relief than Domestic Farm Interests
• Worldpoliticsreview.com: Rejection of U.S. Food Aid by NGO Signals Change in Global Hunger Policy 
• The Baltimore Sun Editorial: A Bold Gesture
• Atlanta Journal and Constitution: CARE, Feds' Food Aid at Odds

CARE's decision also has prompted feedback from our supporters. Click here to read excerpts of the many letters we have received on the topic.