According to the State of Food Security and Nutrition in the World, a report that the United Nations (UN) produces annually, hunger and malnutrition figures are rising worldwide, including in the United States. A growing number of people face food insecurity and hunger. They may have insufficient money for food or lack access to food and other vital resources. Food charity organizations are essential for assisting such people and fighting hunger.
What is hunger?
Hunger is the physical distress that people experience when they go for entire days without eating. It can also describe situations where people consume less than 1,800 calories per day and suffer from undernourishment or malnutrition. There is a strong interconnection between poverty and hunger since poverty-stricken individuals and families are more likely to have unemployment, food insecurity, unsafe environments, and unhygienic conditions that contribute to hunger issues. Wars, social unrest, economic downturns, and weak governmental institutions are also responsible for the rising cases of hunger.
What are food donations?
Since hunger is a day-to-day need, it is important to implement immediate, short-term, and long-term solutions to combat it. Food donations are one of the direct solutions. It can be in the form of actual food donated or monetary contributions that make it possible for food charity organizations to buy and donate food. At present, there are plenty of generous tax incentives in the United States for people to make food donations, and people are very proactive in making their contributions. However, unfortunately, there are still various impediments to making food donations less effective than they could be.
According to estimates from various research studies, over 13 million tons of food gets wasted on US farms every year, either because the farmers cannot harvest it on time or it does not meet the aesthetic standards set by food marketers. Only about seven to ten percent of surplus food in the United States is donated, while the rest ends up in dumpsters and landfills.
Unfortunately, the food safety laws in the country play a role in this as they do not make it clear to the public what food can be safely donated to food organizations. That has led to people throwing away good food rather than risking violating the food safety laws by donating it.
Another problem is the high cost of transporting surplus food from farms. While farmers and other food growers may good intentions and want to contribute to social good, they must also calculate the economic cost to themselves if they intend to stay in business in the long term. Often enough, they cannot afford to give away the extra food they have to the communities that need it, and, therefore, it goes to waste.
Having safe, efficient, sufficient, and cost-effective storage areas to preserve surplus food until the food charity organizations can give it to those in need is also a concern regarding food donation.
By addressing these issues and taking steps to reduce food wastage, US authorities, non-governmental agencies, and food charity organizations are likely to have enough food to feed everyone facing food insecurity in the country.
How can food donations help fight hunger?
Food donations can help fight hunger in the following ways:
• They can provide a range of fresh and nutritious food to people who need it.
• They can ensure that individuals and families in dire need receive immediate food supplies.
• They can ensure that food banks have sufficient food items to distribute to local communities.
• They can ensure that low-income and unemployed individuals and families do not have to put up with the danger of food insecurity.
• They can ensure that people get more than the minimally required daily calories to stay healthy.
• They can ensure that children from underprivileged backgrounds do not grow up malnourished.
When people in a society are not at risk of hunger, they are likely to be:
• Healthy and well-nourished
• Mentally and physically well-adjusted
• Capable of finding employment and staying employed
• Capable of earning enough to support themselves and their families
• Capable of being responsible, respectful, and helpful citizens
A society with well-fed, healthy citizens is likely to have low crime rates, a higher happiness index, and better potential for economic growth.
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