Tony and Dolly Ellis

Many of us will join family and friends for a big meal tomorrow. Certainly most will be thankful for blessings received throughout the year.

Many won't have that luxury. According to this release from the Food Research and Action Center, more than 36 million people lived in households struggling against hunger in 2007.  Though the numbers aren't in, it must be worse in 2008.

The people at Tyson Foods would like to extend our gratitude for the hundreds of food banks, the thousands of agencies, and the hundreds of thousands of people who put their time, their energy, their money and talents into helping feed those who are struggling.  We know that often it's a job that doesn't receive the thanks it truly deserves.

On this Thanksgiving, we offer the prayer that a day will come when your resources won't need to be focused on feeding hungry people.  Meanwhile, we're grateful--every day--that they are.

by Ed Nicholson

The Second Harvest Food Bank of Middle Tennessee (Nashville) has a unique USDA-inspected food processing facility in their food bank that produces "boil in the bag" food for hunger and disaster relief.

In addition to producing for their own agencies--food pantries, backpack programs, etc.--they also produce for other Feeding America food banks around the country.

Scott Burleson, director of manufacturing for the food bank, describes the operation in the video above.

This is a great example of innovative solutions being applied to ongoing challenges.

by Andrea Sherwood

The language we use with hunger fascinates, confuses and perplexes me. Is hunger in America an issue or a crisis? Does it matter?

I wonder what noun I am to use when I blog about hunger in America. I was at a PRSA lunch presentation recently focusing on crisis management. Hunger was not a direct focus. Rather, the context was natural disasters, tragedies and incidents. The question was asked, what makes an issue become a crisis? A suggested answer was given that an issue becomes a crisis when the media takes hold of it. I think there is a lot of truth to this. So, I ask…
How can we get the media to take hold of the issue of hunger to raise it to crisis level?

What needs to happen to shift the “issue” of hunger in America to a “crisis?”

When does a hunger problem become an issue or an issue become a problem?

When does a hunger issue become a crisis?

How or why is it that I most often hear hunger in Africa as a crisis and the hunger in America as an issue?

Does the noun we use matter as we try to end hunger?

What do you think?

By Ed Nicholson

Beth Kanter pointed us to this very well-written article by David Cay Johnston in the New York Times discussing the state of hunger in America today, which states the obvious for those involved the fight:  Hunger relief organizations are seeing exponential growth in demand due to a struggling economy, at the same time resources are shrinking. 

"What makes the demand so striking this year is not only the suddenness but also the demographic that is seeking help. Most of the newcomers have been employed and have managed to survive dips in the job market. Many of them are couples and single parents who... had [previously] managed without handouts."

And on the supply side, improvements in inventory and quality control by donor companies have reduced available product, while, "Surplus production is often sold to overseas markets at a discount that brings food manufacturers more than the value of the tax deduction of a charitable donation, food bank managers across the country said in interviews." 

Times are tough.  If you can afford it, donate to your local food bank. 

By Ed Nicholson

I'm preparing a presentation for a group of college students about how the Tyson Foods hunger relief program applies to corporate social responsibility.

Here are some questions I'll be posing? 

• Should a company's social responsibilty engagement be driven first and foremost by the public's expectation that companies give back to society?  Or should there be a business case for giving back; should it be because ultimately, there's going to be a return on investment for those resources, whether time, talent, cash or in-kind resources?  
•  Are these different drivers mutually exclusive? 
• If it's primarily to meet public expectations, is that obligation suspended if the company is not making a profit? 
• If there's to be a return on investment, what's the responsibilty of the recipient organzation?
• If there's a social responsiblity to give back, what if the choice is between not taking care of other stakeholders (eliminating jobs, for example), and meeting that obligation?

I obviously have some opinions, but I'd love to hear from different perspectives on any of these questions. Please comment.

Gayle Keck of the San Francisco Food Bank, and Amy Sherman, who does the Cooking With Amy blog, disucss how the Hunger Challenge was put together and executed.  Several Bay Area bloggers documented their experiences of living on $21 a week (a typical Food Stamp allotment)

It's a great example of how social media can be put to good use creating much-needed awareness for the issue. 

By Andrea Sherwood

Growing up on a farm and living most of my life in Iowa amongst proud people, I still find myself in awe of hunger in America. I have been involved in this hunger fight on American soil for a short 2.5 years. Prior to this “hometown fight” my involvement was with world hunger. I was completely unaware of the severe hunger problem we have here in America. This problem is in the communities where we live, work and play. Was I blind, uninformed, and unaware? Yes. Was I uninterested, uncaring, and unwilling to join the fight? No. Once, aware of this problem it has become a passion of mine both in my work life and personal life.
Why was I unaware? Why didn’t I see this hunger?  I don’t ever want this to happen with another issue again! After some lengthy pondering I think I may have part of the answer.
 I grew up in the heartland of Grundy County, Iowa, in a community where people are proud, generous, helpful, and welcoming. People are also stoic with emotions and troubles. At the same time, they are always giving.
You see, being proud is not about being boastful, arrogant, uncaring or greedy. Proud people try to take care of troubles and business while putting up the front that all is well. We would much rather give than even think of receiving.
In communities like this, what happens if people let those fronts down or ask for help? People get more than what was imagined when living among proud people. Why is this? It is because neighbors are also proud. They too want to help.
So, I believe that hunger is hard to see in America because it goes beyond the stereotypes of the pictures we see in the media and across the world. Does it mean that hunger is any less of an issue here in America? No, absolutely not. It means we are proud, we don’t want to ask for help, we don’t want to need help. It is much easier to give than receive.
In the coming weeks, I will share stories of inspiration from the past two-and-a-half years of working to end hunger in the community where we live, work and play. You will see real life examples of the proud people who have joined me in this fight to end hunger in our community!  Now that I am aware, I see it everywhere. I want to help increase awareness because my experience tells me that once aware, action is taken! I believe that together we can end hunger!
Please comment about how you became aware of this issue of hunger in America or what got you involved in this hometown fight? Who or what has inspired you to be involved?

John Curry is the food resources manager for the San Francisco Food Bank.  John was instrumental in our expanding the Hunger Challenge comment for food effort to all five food banks in the Bay area. In addition to being an all-around good guy , John also helps manage a unique distribution sysem for the food bank.  John discusses the system in the video interview attached. 

John's a great example of the kind of dedicated folks you'll find in food banks all around the country.