Rural Communities Hit Hardest By Hunger
The 2005 Annual Report of the charity Bread for the World
shows something that we might consider to be surprising: 90% of
the poorest counties in America are rural and 20% of rural children
live in what is considered to be a “food insecure” household.
Strengthening
Rural Communities, Bread for the World Institute’s 15th annual report
on the state of world hunger shows that rural America and rural areas
around the world are especially hit hard by hunger and political
neglect.
“America’s
rural communities and rural people around the world have one thing in
common-they are more likely to be hungry and poor than other people in
their country,” said Rev. David Beckmann, president of Bread for the
World. “Our report shows that people in rural areas are cut off from
opportunity. Governments regard them as a low priority.”
The
current system of U.S. agricultural subsidies is not doing the job it
needs to do to help struggling families and communities in rural areas.
70 per cent of the subsidies go to 10 per cent of the largest growers.
60 per cent of our farmers receive no subsidies at all. The system
needs to be changed. Farm payments need to be redirected to provide
credit, small business opportunities, and better services to help our
struggling families and communities in rural areas in this country.
Bread
for the World suggests, amongst other things, that American subsidy
policy needs to be focused on helping smaller farmers make a living
from agriculture, not on helping larger farmers and agribusinesses
maintain profit margins.
Read the Executive Summary and Report Here
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