2023 Advocacy Priorities
Overarching Themes
- End hunger to improve health outcomes for vulnerable communities
End hunger to improve health outcomes for vulnerable communities
Access to enough nutritious food for a healthy, active life is a basic necessity for hundreds of millions of people currently experiencing hunger across the globe. The consequences of inadequate food and its negative health outcomes across the lifespan are well-known. The Alliance promotes comprehensive solutions to improve access to nutritious foods through humanitarian assistance around the world and federal nutrition programs at home. In particular, we support communities at greater risk of hunger and those that are historically disenfranchised.
- Ensure greater equity in anti-hunger policies
Ensure greater equity in anti-hunger policies
Due to systemic racism in the United States, people of color are more vulnerable to hunger and poverty. They experience food insecurity at up to three and four times the rate of white individuals. Ending hunger in America requires movement toward closing the racial gaps in food and nutrition security, ultimately creating better outcomes for all people experiencing food insecurity. The Alliance promotes solutions that engage Black, Indigenous and communities of color in formulating solutions, as well as, improve access to and the effectiveness of federal nutrition programs for these communities.
Domestic Priorities
- Farm Bill
Farm Bill
Reauthorized every five years, the Farm Bill is a primary driver of key nutrition programs in the United States, including the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), The Emergency Food Assistance Program (TEFAP), and the Commodity Supplemental Food Program (CSFP). The Alliance to End Hunger urges continued support and increased flexibilities for these critical programs. See a quick one-pager of Farm Bill priorities HERE.
- Child Nutrition Improvements
Child Nutrition Improvements
Focusing on child nutrition is critical to address food insecurity disparities and ensure low-income children and families have access to the nutrition they need to thrive. Equity must be at the forefront of all proposed child nutrition legislation and implementation and is a top priority for Alliance to End Hunger. The Alliance will continue to advocate for key policy solutions that would increase access to nutritional support programs for America’s low-income children and families. The Alliance to End Hunger urges Congress to act now and pass strong child nutrition legislation.
- Appropriations
Appropriations
Each year Congress must adequately fund key anti-hunger programs through the annual appropriations legislative process. Alliance to End Hunger advocates that Congress takes a comprehensive approach to addressing food insecurity disparities, recognizing the inseparable relationship between nutrition access, overall health, social well-being, and future prosperity. Robust and accessible federal nutrition programs ensure nutrition assistance is targeted to communities and individuals that need it most. Alliance to End Hunger urges Congress to pass strong appropriation bills to ensure funding is available to meet the demand for nutrition support in the United States.
- Advance National Strategy on Hunger, Nutrition and Health
Advance National Strategy on Hunger, Nutrition and Health
In September of 2022 the White House under the Biden-Harris Administration hosted the White House Conference on Hunger, Nutrition, and Health. The first such conference in nearly 50 years, The Conference culminated in a National Strategy on Hunger, Nutrition and Health. This ambitious plan included many priorities of the Alliance and its members and partners. We now must urge implementation of the strategy both in the Administration and in Congress.
- Advance Nutrition Outcomes
Advance Nutrition Outcomes
Adequate nutrition is vital throughout the lifespan. However it is most critical in the first 1,000 days from pregnancy to age two and helps to determine a child’s brain development and lays the foundations for lifelong health. Maternal nutrition is a critical determinant of infant health. Unfortunately, the U.S. has one of the highest infant mortality rates among comparable countries, with notable disparities along racial lines. The Alliance works to integrate food insecurity into broader public health discussions and advocates for improved reach and effectiveness of child nutrition programs.
Global Priorities
- Farm Bill
Farm Bill
The Farm Bill comes up every five years and is up for reauthorization in 2023. The Alliance advocates passage of the Farm Bill this year with robust support for critical funding for global food security and nutrition including the Title II Food for Peace program and the McGovern Dole Food for Education program. You can read our global Farm Bill priorities HERE.
- Global Food Security Act/Feed the Future Implementation
Global Food Security Act/Feed the Future Implementation
The Alliance continues to prioritize Feed the Future (FTF) – a whole-of-government initiative focused on building up agricultural productivity, decreasing malnutrition, and making a meaningful impact on global poverty. The Alliance worked hard to reauthorize the program last year through passage of the Global Food Security Act, which authorized FTF for another five years. The Alliance will continue to build a strong coalition of Congressional support for the FTF initiative and work with the Administration to implement it.
- Appropriations
Appropriations
Funding for global programs has been relatively flat in recent years. The Alliance advocates for increased Congressional support for key programs addressing global food security and nutrition, including the Global Food Security Program, Food for Peace, Nutrition, and the McGovern-Dole Food for Education program.
- Implementation of Global Malnutrition Prevention and Treatment Act
Implementation of Global Malnutrition Prevention and Treatment Act
The Alliance advocates for the U.S. government to promote global nutrition among Congress and the Administration. The Alliance worked to pass the Global Malnutrition Prevention and Treatment Act (GMPTA) last year prioritizing addressing global malnutrition, specifically stunting and wasting at USAID. The Alliance will advocate implementation of GMPTA and increasing funding support for global nutrition, such as Ready-to-Use-Therapeutic Food (RUTF).
- Climate – Food Systems Nexus
Climate – Food Systems Nexus
Agriculture has an effect on climate and is increasingly affected by climate change and needs to be a central pilar for policymakers nationally and globally. The Alliance to End Hunger is committed to ensuring that climate change is a central pillar of food security, nutrition and global agricultural development programming.