Our Work
Global Food Crisis
Global food prices are influenced by a complex set of factors including weather conditions affecting crop yields, rapid growth in consumption, increased production and transportation costs due to rising energy prices, competition between biofuels and food, as well as national and international policy decisions.
Rising Food Costs Hit Families Hard
As world leaders continue to discuss the myriad causes of the global food crisis, the reality remains that millions of people cannot afford sufficient nutritious food. Soaring prices hit the hardest in impoverished communities, where meager incomes barely cover the cost of a family’s food, let alone other expenses such as medical care and children’s education. According to the World Food Programme, people in the developing world now spend between 60 and 80 per cent of their income of food, compared to 10 to 20 per cent of budgets allocated to food in developed nations.
Increasing food prices are contributing to growing hunger and social and political unrest – including recent riots in Haiti over the rising costs of food. The steep increase in prices is particularly a concern for developing nations, where an estimated one billion people already struggling to live on less than one dollar a day are particularly vulnerable. The World Bank projects that more than 100 million people have been pushed deeper into poverty and hunger by rising food prices.
In Afghanistan, one Samaritan’s Purse partner reports that the price of a 49 kg bag of flour has increased from $12 to $44 in just one year. Flour is the main input in the bread that local families eat for breakfast, lunch, and supper. Many families that previously used four bags of flour each month can now only afford to purchase two bags and have had to decrease the number of meals they eat each day. Cutting meals and substituting less nutritious foods are two of the most common coping mechanisms for families struggling to survive.
According to agricultural experts, world stocks of grain are at their lowest levels in more than 30 years. The price of rice – a staple food for over half the world’s population – has risen by as much as 70 per cent in the last year, according to the United Nation’s Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO).
Chronic Hunger
The high cost of food only acerbates the issue of global hunger. Two billion people suffer from “hidden hunger” or micronutrient deficiencies. Ninety per cent of the world’s hungry live with chronic hunger – a nagging hunger that does not go away. Families – particularly in urban areas and in countries where rice is a staple food – face this hunger each day.
Our Work
Samaritan’s Purse continues to work alongside local Christian partners addressing both the immediate need for food as well as working with communities to find long-term solutions that will strengthen livelihoods and local food supplies.
Soaring food prices not only impact projects which purchase grain and other food items for distribution. Now, the salaries paid to Samaritan’s Purse national staff and partners also do not stretch as far as these individuals try to provide for their families. Samaritan’s Purse is responding to requests from partners in places like Afghanistan and Ethiopia to help offset the rising costs of food. Samaritan’s Purse expects to receive more requests for this kind of support as local economies and families are impacted.
In addition to our feeding and nutrition projects – currently operating in more than a dozen countries including Niger, Ethiopia, Nepal, and Bolivia – Samaritan’s Purse is committed to long-term, sustainable agriculture and livelihood projects that increase the ability of families and communities to provide food and generate income. We help communities set up livestock projects, provide tools and seeds, work with communities to identify suitable crops for their region, and educate farmers in growing and harvesting techniques.
Read more about Samaritan’s Purse’ work in:
Empowering Communities
Feeding and Nutrition
Agriculture
Livestock
Ways You Can Help
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Pray
Please pray that God will continue to provide wisdom and direction to Samaritan’s Purse as we respond to people’s needs, share the love of Christ, and serve the church worldwide. |  | GiveHelp meet this urgent need by supporting feeding and nutrition projects around the world. Donate Here.
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