FYI -
Hunger in a World of Wasted Food is a Tragic Paradox, Pope Says
VATICAN CITY (CNS) - Providing food aid to people in need is not enough to eradicate world hunger, Pope Francis said. An overhaul of the entire framework of aid policies and food production is needed so that countries can be in charge of their own agricultural markets, he said.
"For how long will systems of production and consumption that exclude the majority of the world's population even from the crumbs that fall from the tables of the rich continue to be defended?" he asked. "The time has come to start thinking and deciding based on each person and community and not from market trends." he said.
The Pope made his comments in a message marking the Oct. 16th celebration of World Food Day, a commemoration sponsored by the U.N. Food and Agriculture Organization to highlight the global fight against hunger and the need to help farmers and farm workers...
The U.N. organization estimates that 842 million people are chronically hungry, but that many more die or suffer the ill effects of inadequate nutrition. Close to 7 million children die before their fifth birthday every year, 162 million children under 5 are stunted, while at the same time, 500 million people are obese, its latest figures say.
Source: Texas Catholic Herald, October 28th, 2014; p. 17.
