Wider U.S. Food Programs Urged; Poll Supports Tax to End Hunger

A coalition of corporate, church and political leaders called Monday for a $10-billion expansion of government food programs to end hunger in America.

The group said that a nationwide poll of registered voters found that most believe hunger is a serious problem and would be willing to pay higher taxes so that the 5.5 million American children who go to bed hungry every night would have enough to eat.

“We as a nation do not have a scarcity of resources. We have the capacity to wipe out hunger. We have a growing consensus that we ought to do it,” said Christine Vladimiroff, president of Second Harvest, a national food bank network based in Chicago.

Activists said hunger could be eliminated by expanding federal food programs, such as food stamps and the school breakfast program, at an additional cost to the government of about $10 billion.

The coalition said that a nationwide poll of 1,000 registered voters found that 67% would be willing to pay higher annual taxes of $100 per household for programs to end hunger among children and their families. Pollster Research/Strategy/Management Inc. said the error rate was 4%.

The poll found a perception that hunger has become more widespread over the last five years and now threatens the middle class as well as the poor.

“Hunger is an injustice. Adequate nutrition is a basic human right. The United States cannot relegate hunger to charity,” said the Rev. Thomas J. Harvey, president of Catholic Charities USA.