The antihunger community asked President-elect Donald Trump and the Republican-controlled Congress to protect public nutrition programs, from food stamps and school lunch to commodity donation programs. “We call on them to recommit America to one of its most important and widely agreed-upon beliefs, one that has deep and long-standing bipartisan support: Nobody in this country should go hungry,” said a statement signed by a dozen groups that also requested that the incoming administration and Congress avoid block grants, spending cuts and other changes that would undermine the fight against hunger.
The group issued a joint statement ahead of the new administration office and the Jan. 3 start of the new session of Congress. Some 43.5 million people participated in food stamps, the largest U.S. antihunger program, at latest count. House Republicans have voted repeatedly to convert the program into a block grant for states to run. Work on the 2014 farm law was derailed briefly when conservative House Republicans pushed for the largest cuts in food stamps in a generation.
Preliminary hearings on the 2018 farm bill are expected to begin in the months ahead. Food stamps are up for review as part of the farm bill.
Groups signing the letter included Bread for the World, the Food Research and Action Center, Feeding America, Bread for the World, Mazon, and Meals on Wheels America.