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The UN food agency said millions of people are being pushed into acute hunger by the Iran war, as it warned would happen if the conflict escalated and oil prices remained high. The World Food Program said an analysis in three vulnerable countries found that an additional 2.5 million people in Somalia, 2.3 million in Afghanistan and 1.3 million in Sri Lanka are struggling to meet their basic food needs. In March, WFP predicted that 45 million people could be pushed into food insecurity by the end of June. That would be on top of the 318 million people around the world who are already food insecure. "We remain by that prognosis," WFP's acting Executive Director Carl Skau told UN reporters. "That's mainly because the correlation between the prices of energy and food is so tight in many places, and also that in the poorest countries people are already spending all their money on food, and hence when food prices rise, they eat less." WFP said in its report, circulated late Thursday, tha
Prime Minister Narendra Modi was on Wednesday conferred with the prestigious FAO Agricola Medal by the Food and Agriculture Organisation of the United Nations in recognition of his contribution to food security, sustainable agriculture and rural development. Modi, who arrived in Italy on Tuesday night on the concluding leg of his five-nation tour, received the award from Dr Qu Dongyu, Director-General of FAO at the UN body's headquarters in Rome. Modi said that the honour reflects India's unwavering commitment to food security, sustainable development and the hard work of those associated with the agriculture sector. "This is an honour to India's millions of farmers, livestock rearers, fish farmers, agricultural scientists, and workers. This is also an honour to India's unwavering commitment, at the centre of which lies human welfare, food security, and Sustainable Development," he said. The FAO Agricola Medal is one of the highest honours awarded by the FAO to distinguished ...
With the United States trying to squeeze Iran by blockading goods from entering or exiting its ports, food suppliers are rerouting imports via the Caspian Sea to ensure food keeps getting into the country. The head of the Association of Iran's Food Industries said Monday that alternative import routes are being "incorporated into the supply chain for essential goods". "At present, there is no problem with the country's food security, but maintaining this situation requires careful planning," Mohammad Reza Mortazavi said, according to the state-owned Islamic Republic of Iran Broadcasting. The Caspian is the world's largest inland body of water and its southern coastline stretches more than 430 miles (700 km) in northern Iran. Iran is a net importer of food staples like grain and cooking oil.
With the longest US government shutdown over, state officials said Thursday that they are working quickly to get full SNAP food benefits to millions of people, though it still could take up to a week for some to receive their delayed aid. A back-and-forth series of court rulings and shifting policies from President Donald Trump's administration has led to a patchwork distribution of November benefits under the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program. While some states already had issued full SNAP benefits, about two-thirds of states had issued only partial benefits or none at all before the government shutdown ended late Wednesday, according to an Associated Press tally. The federal food programme serves about 42 million people, about 1 in 8 Americans, in lower-income households. They receive an average of around $190 monthly per person, though that doesn't necessarily cover the full cost of groceries for a regular month. A spokesperson for the US Department of Agriculture, which
The crises at the heart of the government shutdown fight in Washington came to a head as the federal food assistance programme faced delays and millions of Americans were set to see a dramatic rise in their health insurance bills. The impacts on basic needs food and medical care underscored how the impasse is hitting homes across the United States. Plans by the Trump administration to freeze payments to the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Programme on Saturday were halted by federal judges, but the delay in payouts will still likely leave millions of people short on their grocery bills. It all added to the strain on the country, with a month of missed paychecks for federal workers and growing air travel delays. The shutdown is already the second longest in history and entered its second month on Saturday. This is more than a crisis, said the Rev John Udo-Okon, who runs the Word of Life Christian Fellowship International food pantry in the Bronx, where hundreds more people than .
About half of the world's population may not be able to access healthy food, clean environment or earn a living wage, indicating inequities in human health that have been made worse by geopolitical conflicts and climate change, according to a new Lancet report. Further, the world's food system -- contributing to 30 per cent of greenhouse gas emissions -- is the main driver of challenges the planet faces by impacting climate, biodiversity, land use change, among others, it said. The crisis of inequity in access to conditions required for good human health and environmental harm due to global food systems threatens human health and the resilience of planet Earth, authors said in the '2025 EAT-Lancet Commission on Healthy, Sustainable, and Just Food Systems'. Launched in January 2019, the 'EAT-Lancet Commission' outlines recommendations for a 'planetary health diet' -- favouring fruits, vegetables, nuts and legumes and small portions of meat and dairy -- and targets for achieving a ...
The Campaign Against Hunger was already struggling to feed thousands of families a week when the Trump administration pulled more than $1.3 million in grants. Demand has only increased at the New York nonprofit since the city emerged from the COVID-19 pandemic and the related economic insecurity. In a first for the pantry, however, it isn't just the jobless lining up for its fresh produce and meats. It's working people, too. Food banks typically see the most need during periods of high unemployment and yet the US is facing down a hunger crisis during a relatively resilient labour market. The latest US Department of Agriculture research showed there were one million more food insecure households in 2023 than 2022. Now, income stagnation and rising living costs are sending wage earners to food banks across the country all as the federal government shuts off funding streams that provide millions with healthier, harder-to-get groceries. The squeeze comes as Republicans discuss budget .