Destine Johnson
1674 Words
December 3, 2015
Final DRAFT
Government Assistance
Approximately 842 million people suffer from chronic hunger world-wide (“Quick
Facts”). Can we fix this? Food aid from the United States is being sent to countries in need.
About seventy-five percent of the food being provided for this aid is processed in the United
States and shipped on United States vessels (“Quick Facts”). Is this hurting the local farmers of
the countries being helped? The food takes about six months to reach the people in need of it
(“Quick Facts”). Is this too long? To make food aid more efficient and to ensure precise delivery,
we need to buy the food locally and work with President Obama’s food aid reform plan.
The first food stamp program grew out of the contradictions of the Great Depression of
the 1930s in which agricultural surpluses mocked the problems of rising unemployment hunger,
destitution, and falling farm incomes. The government's initial response of destroying
agricultural commodities seemed unreasonable in light of growing poverty and hunger. The first
food stamp program began in 1939 and continued until 1943, when the wartime boom had solved
the unemployment problem, and agricultural surpluses were no longer accumulating
Food Aid is a big help to the countries in need. The United States' current food aid
system was created in 1954 (“What is ‘monetization of food aid’?”). During the time the food aid
system was created, the United States had an agricultural surplus. Shipping the surplus abroad
was agreed to be the best choice. It could be used to help those who are in need of food. Not all
of the food sent to the countries in need is used to feed the hungry. Some of the countries choose
to sell the food and use the money for funding development projects, or monetization.
1
Destine Johnson
1674 Words
December 3, 2015
Final DRAFT
How food aid works is pretty simple. Food is grown on United States soil. The food is
processed then shipped on United States vessels (“Quick Facts”). After about six months, the
food finally reaches the countries in need. The aid can come in two ways: prevention of global
hunger or monetization. When the food aid is used in the prevention of global hunger, the food is
given out to those who are starving and in need of the food. The other option is monetization.
Monetization of U.S. food aid is the sale of food commodities purchased in and shipped from the
United States and sold for local currency in a recipient country by "cooperating sponsors," which
are typically U.S. based non-governmental organizations (NGOs) or recipient governments
(“World Hunger Notes”). So, in simple words, the countries who receive this aid sell the food
and use the money to help better their country.
If the food aid is not in the form of monetization, then it goes to help fight against global
hunger. Global hunger problems have been rising ever since food prices have been going up.
Every year, 1.5 million people die from hunger, including 16,000 children. That is one child
every five seconds (“Global Hunger”). We need to do the best we can to stop this. Bringing more
food aid, in the form of food, not monetization, is one way we can help. We can use our current
food aid system and use President Obama's new plan to make it as efficient as possible. President
Obama’s plan is to give more money to the food aid budget, to have more of the food used be
bought regionally. We need to figure out a way to get the food to the people in need faster. This
may be using local grown food from the countries in need, which is one of President Obama’s
plans.
We could use monetization or send them supplies or money or even workers to help, if
that is what they need. The food would be grown locally, or nearby the countries in need of the
2
Destine Johnson
1674 Words
December 3, 2015
Final DRAFT
food, so the food would not take long to get to those in need of it. Also, because the food is
grown locally, the farmers would benefit. Having the farmers grow the food, would help keep
them out of poverty and would benefit their economy.
The United States is working hard to help some of the countries in need. This help builds
relationships between the U.S and these countries. This aid and the relationships built can be
used to build peace. Other countries may follow our example and help out other countries in
need. If we can get many countries helping each other, we can have world peace and avoid war.
Together, the countries can work together to defeat global hunger.
President Obama's 2014 budget will bring changes to the food aid system. The changes
will allow life-saving assistance to about four million more people (“Food Assistance”). This
budget will provide USAID (the United States Agency for International Development) with 1.8
billion dollars for food assistance. This money will help create a more efficient and effective
system to help the people in need. The time that is taken now to deliver food is too long. Because
more of the food for food aid will be bought locally or regionally, the food will be able to be
delivered eleven to fourteen weeks faster than usual. Savings will be from twenty-five to fifty
percent (“Food Assistance”).
President Obama's food aid reform proposals are a great start to help taking action with
this problem. The increase in money will help greatly. The money needs to be used to help get
the food delivered more efficiently. A good way to do that is by bringing in the local farmers and
working with them. Having the farmers help would better their economy and keep them out of
3
Destine Johnson
1674 Words
December 3, 2015
Final DRAFT
poverty. If the food is grown locally, it would ensure precise quantity and delivery of the crops. I
would want my representatives to support these proposals.
I believe in helping and service. I want to help everyone that I can. The United States and
our government officials have made good decisions by sending help to the other countries in
need. This is a great way to build peace and create good relationships. We should do all we can
to keep providing this service to those in need of it. One day, if the United States needs help like
this, or any other kind of help, the countries will return the favor. We just need to perfect this
food aid system now. Food aid would be more efficient if the local farmers would work together
to ensure precise quantity and delivery of the crops. Once all of these ideas are taken into
account, this aid will be great. Every day, 20,864 people die from hunger related causes (“Global
Hunger”). Together, we can help stop this.
In the 1970s and early 1980s, food stamps became a sort of second-class currency in lowincome neighborhoods. Although food stamps could legally be used only to purchase food, some
merchants fudged and sold alcohol and other grocery store items for food stamps. On the streets,
foods stamps traded for cash, but at steep discounts. Individuals traded food stamps for cash and
used the cash to purchase items that could not be purchased with food stamps.
Partly because of the fraudulent use of food stamps, the federal government during the Reagan
years cut back on food stamp expenditures. The program remained in place, however, and the
1990s saw many states implement electronic benefit transfer programs that substituted a debit
card for coupons. The use of the cards requires identification, rendering the transfer of food
stamp benefits to parties other than the cardholder almost impossible. Since 2004, all 50 states
4
Destine Johnson
1674 Words
December 3, 2015
Final DRAFT
have had electronic benefit transfers. Given that food items such as livestock, rice, corn, and
many others have historically emerged as mediums of exchange, it should not be surprising that
coupons redeemable for food would wear the aspect of money and circulate accordingly.
Presumably, food stamp money will disappear in time because it involves an illegal use of food
stamps, and the government will work to improve its regulation of the program.
Although the school lunch program started in the 1940s, and the food stamp program had
been revived in 1961, by the late 1960s, the country discovered that many people were still
hungry and even starving. Senators, doctors, women's organizations, and prominent citizens filed
reports of hunger and malnutrition across the country. Food stamps at that time had to be
purchased at a discount, and the poorest people could not afford to buy them. At that time the
school lunch program did not have enough funding to provide lunches to all poor children.
As a result of these investigations into hunger, the food stamp and school lunch programs
were expanded. In the late 1960s, some members of Congress wanted to add a new program just
for pregnant women and young children. However, because of political opposition, this program
did not pass until 1972.
This first program was a temporary one lasting for two years. It provided federal money to states,
which then were to distribute these funds to local health and welfare agencies and nonprofit
health organizations. This money was to be used to provide extra food to pregnant women and
children under four years of age who, in the opinion of the local welfare professionals, were
malnourished or at risk of becoming so.
5
Destine Johnson
1674 Words
December 3, 2015
Final DRAFT
Works Cited
“Food Assistance.” U.S. Agency for International Development. N.P., n.d. Web. 7. Nov.
2013.
"Global Hunger." Bread. N.p., n.d. Web. 10 Nov. 2013.
"Quick Facts." U.S. Agency for International Development. N.p., n.d. Web. 5 Nov. 2013.
"What is ‘monetization of food aid’?” Five questions on food aid "monetization" in the
USA answered." Care International UK. N.p., n.d. Web. 7 Nov. 2013.
Simmons, Emmy. “World Hunger Notes -- Monetization of Food Aid: Reconsidering
U.S.
Policy and Practice.” Reviewed by Steven Hansch. Web. 5 Nov. 2013.
Allen, Larry. (2015). food stamps. In American Government. Retrieved December 3,
2015, from http://americangovernment2.abc-clio.com.db15.linccweb.org/
Sreenivasan, Jyotsna. (2015). Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women,
Infants and Children (WIC) program. In American Government. Retrieved December 3, 2015,
from http://americangovernment2.abc-clio.com.db15.linccweb.org/
6
Destine Johnson
1674 Words
December 3, 2015
Final DRAFT
7