CARE says that a provision in the newly passed Farm Bill takes an important first step in helping the hungry overseas but needs to go further. A pilot program to buy food aid in developing nations needs to be expanded in order to diminish hunger in the long run. Currently the measure only addresses emergency situations.
"The pilot local purchase program is a good idea that CARE and many others have long championed, but it needs more money and more flexibility to meet the needs of hungry people worldwide," says Dr. Helene Gayle, President and CEO of CARE.
CARE and others, including Senators Richard Durbin (D-Illinois) and Tom Harkin (D-Iowa), the Bush administration and food aid experts, recommended changes in the law to allow the purchase of some food in developing countries. Buying food closer to the places where people need it saves lives and money. It takes less time than shipping food overseas and helps to make poor farmers more self-sufficient.
The approved pilot makes all the sense in the world in principle. However, in practice, it calls for only $60 million over four to five years, and restricts funding to emergency food assistance. At a time when food prices are soaring with no end in sight, and staples are diminishing due to drought and other natural disasters, U.S. food aid dollars will buy significantly less than before, even as the number of hungry people continues to rise.
Buying food locally and regionally is one way we can make this money go further. The local and regional purchase option should also be incorporated into the supplemental appropriations bill requesting more funding for food assistance.
"This option would allow aid agencies to respond to the current global food crisis more quickly and efficiently, while supporting local farming and economic development," said Dr. Gayle.
CARE welcomes other provisions in the Farm Bill modifying parts of the US food assistance program. These include the Bill Emerson Humanitarian Trust and the program providing critical cash assistance for food security activities in food assisted projects. These revisions will bring improvements in the effectiveness and efficiency of the US program.
"However, it is key not to lose sight of the long-term goal — ending hunger," said Dr. Gayle. These provisions are a good step toward that goal, but as the world's leading provider of food aid, we can and must do more."
