We all are well aware of the obesity problem that has struck all of America, but sometimes we turn on backs on a problem that is just as important: child hunger. A campaign was started in 1984 by Share Our Strength has become popularly known as No Kid Hungry. No Kid Hungry targets kids that are in need of nutritious foods. The program teaches low-income families how to provide affordable, healthy foods to their families. A surprising statistic shows one in five children struggle with hunger, which is the basis of why this organization is attempting to “make NoKid Hungry a reality in America”. Eventually, the hope is that hunger or food security won’t be an issue in America, and kids will have access to healthy foods at all times.
I was most surprised to find out that so many different groups of people are involved in the No Kid Hungry campaign. It is made up of numerous government officials, business leaders, and privately involved citizens. All of these groups come together to incorporate hunger solutions throughout various communities. It’s also surprising that only about fifteen states have strongly promoted this campaign. These lone states have worked to break down barriers that cause kids to not have the availability of healthy foods.
The way in which this program began is rather interesting. No Kid Hungry has come a long way since starting in 1984. It all began in response to an Ethiopian famine when a brother and sister believed the fight in global hunger need to be considered by everyone across the country and world. From there, the initiative slowly made steps until it really started to become popular in 2006. In 2007, millions knew the Share Our Strength organization after the Food Network noted it as its favorable charity. The most recently recognized event happened in 2012 when It’s Dinnertime was aired on television. This show was a report on low-income families and how they could design and put together healthy meals for their children. It was a very informative segment that offered many ideas to those less fortunate families.
As No Kid Hungry continues to expand its campaign, it incorporates more programs to target different areas of the audience. Cooking Matters is a program that they put on that assists families shopping on a budget in make healthy meals. Care Center For Best Practices is another program.
This program incorporates providing nutritious foods to members of WIC, school breakfasts, summer meals, as well as after school kids access to snacks. One example of how far an investment of money can go in one these programs comes from Maryland. In one summer program, a surprising 212,000 meals were provided out of $20,000. The funding comes from different resources, one being a fundraiser. Every September, restaurants come together to raise funds through what they call “Dine Out For No Kid Hunger.”
If you were a nutrition educator, No Kid Hungry could be very useful to you. It would show just how important nutritious meals are. This program focuses on ending childhood hunger through access, awareness, and education. Those three categories are crucial in most nutrition education programs or anytime you are trying to inform the public of nutrition knowledge. An educator could also use this program as an example of how you can make a difference in the health of the people around you. The rise and success of No Kid Hungry would make the audience feel more confident in pursuing their ideas since they’ve seen it successfully happen before. Lastly, most people don’t realize how many children are hungry in the world.. This program would offer great leverage on providing awareness on just how many people are truly starving, which would open up the audience’s eyes to the malnourished world around them.
Overall, it seems as if the Share Our Strength No Kid Hungry campaign is gaining support. We can only hope that from this point on, nutrition educators and the public continue to promote this great cause of ending child hunger.
–By Bree Grim