Canadian Foodgrains Bank

Uniting To End World Hunger

Even with a surplus of food in many countries, millions of people around the world, especially in developing countries, are suffering from hunger and malnutrition. The Voice believes that we must get the message out that if food was distributed evenly around the world there would be enough to feed everyone!

The United Nations World Food Programme (WFP) lists malnutrition as the world’s number one health risk (“hunger”, 2014).  There are 7.1 billion people in the world and one out of eight, almost 870 million people, were suffering from chronic malnutrition in 2012 (“hunger”, 2014). 852 million of those suffering live in developing countries, which highlights the tremedous amount of people that uneven food distribution is affecting (“hunger”, 2014). When people are malnourished their physical and mental capabilities are greatly diminished and they cannot sustain the effort needed to acquire food or concentrate to learn. In addition, they face huge increases in disease because of compromised immune systems due to prolonged periods without adequate nutrition (“hunger”, 2014). Mothers and children often fare the worst in hunger stricken areas as children do not grow cognitively or physically without adequate nutrition (“who are the hungry”, n.d.). Unhealthy mothers give birth to small, unhealthy children who have even less of chance for success in any area….and so the cycle continues.

The Canadian Foodgrains Bank is an organization of 32 different faith denominations that are working together to address this serious global issue (“recipe”, 2012). Canadian Foodgrains Bank provides communities with sustainable ways to end hunger by empowering local residents through assistance with immediate food needs and then improving food security in a way that allows the community to generate their own sustainable practices (“what we do”, 2014). "In 2012/13, Canadian Foodgrains Bank approved over $43 million in funding for 122 projects in 37 different countries. Over 40,000 tons of food and seed were provided and 2.1 million people benefited from these programs" (“international programs”, 2014). Canadian Foodgrains Bank demonstrates the benefit of faith communities looking beyond their differences and joining together to end world hunger

A Public Service Poster demonstrating this united approach to sustainable development is available through the title link. There is also a map from the Canadian Foodgrains Bank that provides a visual representation of their projects around the world available through the "different countries link". 

Canadian Foodgrains Bank. (2014). International Programs. Retrieved from http://foodgrainsbank.ca/international_programs.aspx

Canadian Foodgrains Bank. (2012). Recipe for Ending Global Hunger Campaign Launched. Retrieved from http://foodgrainsbank.ca/news/1939/recipe_for_ending_global_hunger_campaign_launched.aspx

Canadian Foodgrains Bank. (2014). What we do. Retrieved from http://foodgrainsbank.ca/what_we_do.aspx

World Food Programme. (2014). Hunger. Retrieved from http://www.wfp.org/hunger

World Food Programme. (n.d.). Who are the hungry?. Retrieved from http://www.wfp.org/hunger/who-are