Tuesday, January 31, 2012

The City that Ended Hunger

Thanks to J'Ann Allen who sent in the following article by Frances Moore Lappe (www.yesmagazine.org). 

J'Ann also raises the question:  What can we do to end hunger and obesity in the U.S.?  You are invited to respond to that question in the comment section below or by e-mail to J'Ann: alleju2001@yahoo.com

More than 10 years ago, Brazil’s fourth-largest city, Belo Horizonte, declared that food was a right of citizenship and started working to make good food available to all. One of its programs puts local farm produce into school meals. This and other projects cost the city less than 2 percent of its budget.

Left, fresh passion fruit juice and salad as part of a school lunch. Photo by Leah Rimkus

In writing Diet for a Small Planet, I learned one simple truth: Hunger is not caused by a scarcity of food but a scarcity of democracy. But that realization was only the beginning, for then I had to ask: What does a democracy look like that enables citizens to have a real voice in securing life’s essentials? Does it exist anywhere? Is it possible or a pipe dream? With hunger on the rise here in the United States—one in 10 of us is now turning to food stamps—these questions take on new urgency.  READ MORE

2 comments:

  1. I don't think people realize that there are so many people around the world that go hungry. I know i don't think about what others eat all the time. This was a very eye opening article. It amazes me what all they do in Belo to decrease poverty and get food to everyone. Such as giving Farmers good spots at markets in exchange for them to go and take food to the higher poverty levels. There is so much that everyone can do to improve this high rise challenge.

    ReplyDelete
  2. This comment has been removed by a blog administrator.

    ReplyDelete