US government calls conference on hunger, nutrition and health

Washington, Aug 29 (Prensa Latina) The Biden-Harris Administration will host the White House Conference on Hunger, Nutrition and Health in Americans on coming September 28, 2022 in Washington, D.C. as the president announced in May, this will be the first Conference of this kind in over 50 years.

August 29, 2022
18:21

The Conference will bring government leaders, academics, activists, and Americans from all walks of life together to achieve the goal of ending hunger and reducing diet-related diseases in the U.S. by 2030 – all while mitigating disparities among the communities who are impacted the most by these issues.

White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said they will announce a national strategy at the Conference that identifies actions 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.

The Conference is expected to focus on the impact of the coronavirus pandemic — which brought to light diet-related diseases, food access and supply chains.

Jean-Pierre noted that millions of Americans have been affected by food insecurity and nutrition-related diseases, including heart disease, obesity and type 2 diabetes, among leading causes of death and disability in the United States.

The meeting was called at a time as the world is presently facing up food situations due to several factors, such as environmental impact on U.S. corn output and the rising grain import prices from Ukraine.

Past June, the Bureau of Labor Statistics reported that during the last year food prices rose to 12.2%, so domestic inflation reached up to a 40-year high of 9.1%, while 8.5% in July, a report that also included fuels and consumer products.

Nevertheless, Washington has spent over $54 billion in military and economic aids to Ukraine, in view of the conflict with Russia. In addition, the U.S. passed an environment reform, health system and tax collection to fight off inflation, however, it accounts for an increased $20 billion in additional taxes for the middle class.

One of major factors for food insecurity globally is the sanctions imposed by the United States and the European Union on Russia´s grain output, while inflation is also closely related to Western restrictions on Russian fuels, and consequently the impact on goods and food.

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