Farm Bill: Race Horses, Big Farms Win, Poor Kids Lose
Friends of the World Food Program just sent a release around (in full in the jump):
Statement from Senator McGovern On Senator Harkin’s Funding Cut For the McGovern-Dole School Feeding Program
WASHINGTON, DC – Former U.S. Senator George McGovern released the following statement today regarding the McGovern-Dole International Food for Education and Child Nutrition Program, which provides meals to hungry schoolchildren who attend primary school in some of the world’s poorest countries:“I am deeply saddened by the current farm bill proposal offered by Senator Tom Harkin to cut mandatory funding for the McGovern-Dole Program from $840 million to $60 million. The $840 million in funding represents less than one percent of total farm bill spending. At a time when record high food prices are pushing millions of families across the globe deeper into poverty, we must step up our efforts to feed hungry school children, not cut funding for school meals. . .
. . .How can we deny the world’s hungriest schoolchildren a meal while at the same time provide tax breaks to owners of race horses and the timber industry, and permit farmers with incomes of nearly $1 million per year to receive domestic farm support payments?"
Prominent champions of the program, like Rep. Jim McGovern (no relation) of Massachusetts, were persuaded to support the House Agriculture Committee's version of the farm bill last summer after this $840 million was added to the House bill. But now it has been all but eliminated by the conferees.
Since its inception, the McGovern-Dole Program has proven its success at breaking the cycle of poverty and hopelessness in poor countries. The resources exist to fund this life-saving program, but the current farm bill misses the mark when it comes to supporting the right priorities. How can we deny the world’s hungriest schoolchildren a meal while at the same time provide tax breaks to owners of race horses and the timber industry, and permit farmers with incomes of nearly $1 million per year to receive domestic farm support payments?
For just a few cents a day, the McGovern-Dole Program has made a critical difference in the lives of children and communities, promoted American values in the most positive terms, and helped achieve U.S. foreign policy and national security goals. By providing a meal to children who attend school in the world’s poorest countries, the program increases attendance rates and student productivity, and gives hope to a new generation of impoverished children across the world.
During my long career in public service, spanning more than fifty years, I have been honored to lead U.S. efforts to reduce hunger both at home and abroad. I believe this could become the first generation in human history that is finally free from the scourge of hunger. I call on Senator Tom Harkin and the other farm bill conferees to restore the $840 million in mandatory funding to the McGovern-Dole program and take a significant step toward making this possibility a reality.”
Contact: Rich Leach
(202) 716-3376
rleach@friendsofwfp.org
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Friends of the World Food Program (Friends of WFP) is a US-based non-profit organization dedicated to building support for the World Food Program (WFP) and other hunger relief efforts. WFP is the largest international food aid organization in the world and the United Nations’ frontline agency in the fight against hunger. For more information, visit www.friendsofwfp.org.
