On September 28 in Washington, D.C., a summit will be held by the White House to discuss issues related to hunger, nutrition, and health in the United States.
The Summit
The event, according to U.S. President Joe Biden, will assist achieve his administration’s goal to eradicate hunger in the country and lower the prevalence of diet-related disorders in the vast majority of people by 2030. The last similar event in the United States occurred in 1969, according to the White House. “One of the factors affecting hunger and diseases linked to diet is the lack of availability to healthy and affordable foods. The COVID-19 pandemic has made these issues even worse, “said Karine Jean-Pierre, the press secretary for the White House.
The summit will produce a national strategy that details the steps the government will take to “catalyze the public and private sectors to drive transformative change and address the intersections between food, hunger, nutrition, and health,” according to Jean-Pierre. The summit is anticipated to bring together government leaders, academics, and activists.
The meeting will focus on how the U.S. can lessen inequities among the groups most affected by these problems, the White House noted. It has not yet been revealed where the event will take place or who will be in attendance.
This year’s Conference will seek to overcome equity gaps while finding policy solutions to minimize diet-related diseases, enhance nutrition and physical activity, and end hunger. In his video remarks announcing the Conference, Biden requested suggestions. He stated that “too many families don’t know where they will obtain their next meal.” Because heart disease, diabetes, or other diet-related disorders are among the top killers in our nation, there are too many vacant chairs arranged around the kitchen table. Six listening sessions with representatives from federal agencies, businesses, health care organizations, environmental and conservation groups, hunger and nutrition organizations, and school and education organizations were held by the White House over the last few months to prepare.
Vince Hall, chief government relations officer of the charity food bank organization Feeding America, whose staff participated in a listening session, “We’re the wealthiest nation in the history of civilization.” “And the fact that millions of our kids are going to bed hungry at night is an intolerable problem that we should decide to put an end to as soon as possible,” the author continued. The symposium is anticipated to center on how the coronavirus pandemic affected supply chains, diet-related illnesses, and food access.
Nixon-Era Hunger Conference
Programs developed during the three-day Conference on food, nutrition, and health in 1969 are still in use. 1,600 of the 1,800 recommendations, including the Women, Infants and Children program, were implemented shortly afterward. WIC, which began as a trial program in 1972, provides women with services such as nutrition counseling, parenting advice, breastfeeding support, and food assistance. It serves half of the infants born in this country.
Additionally, it paved the way for the permanent expansion of the Supplemental Nutritional Assistance Program (SNAP), often known as food stamps. Additionally, it sparked more discussion regarding the availability of meals in schools, a topic that was not as widely discussed in 1969 as it is now.
The ’69 conference, according to nutrition and anti-hunger campaigners, set a high standard, so attention is focused on how the White House will plan this one, including its duration, structure, and participants. The administration’s efforts to push for change through congressional recommendations, executive action and partnerships with nongovernmental organizations are being closely watched by various groups, including food companies like Tyson, nutrition, and food access groups, school administrators, and lawmakers. At the summit, the White House promises to present a “national strategy to end hunger and reduce diet-related diseases.”
Biden’s Goal
By 2030, the Biden-Harris Administration hopes to have eradicated hunger in the United States and increased physical activity and healthy eating, reducing the number of people who suffer from diet-related illnesses like diabetes, obesity, and hypertension. The Conference will inspire action from those who fight hunger and nutrition, food businesses, the medical community, local, state, territory, and tribal governments, and those with lived experiences. It will also publish a national strategy describing how to accomplish this aim. For the following 50 years, the nation’s food policy agenda was shaped by the 1969 First White House Conference on Food, Nutrition, and Health. With this year’s Conference, the President hopes to achieve a similar result.
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