Protect Anti-Hunger Programs in the Farm Bill

 Background

Congress is currently considering legislation that will affect if and how millions of Americans keep food on the table. The Farm Bill, which sets much of U.S. food and agriculture policy, is currently making its way through Congress. This major legislation, which is only considered every five years, has a far-ranging impact, from foreign assistance and food safety, to environmental conservation and anti-hunger programs.  

Anti-hunger programs governed by the Farm Bill, like the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), help millions of individuals and families keep food on the table in spite of harsh economic conditions. In 2011, more than one in five children in America was hungry. In October of 2012, more than 47.5 million Americans participated in the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, and the program lifted 3.9 million people out of poverty that year. There is a great and unmistakable need for anti-hunger programs, and Congress must make sure that strong funding for SNAP is included in the Farm Bill. 

Past proposals by the House Agricultural Committee slashed SNAP funding by $16 billion over ten years. These are real cuts that will have a damaging effect on real families. Representative James McGovern (D-MA) has introduced H. Res. 90, calling on the House to reject the cuts to SNAP proposed in the current Farm Bill.

Jewish Values and Nutrition

The Torah and Jewish tradition are explicit in the command that we feed the hungry and help eradicate hunger from our society. Leviticus 23:22 tells us, "And when you reap the harvest of your land, you shall not reap all the way to the edges of your field, or gather the gleanings of your harvest; you shall leave them for the poor and the stranger. I the Eternal am your God." In Isaiah 58:7, God commands us to "share [our] bread with the hungry and bring the homeless into [our] house."

Our Jewish tradition further teaches us that we must fight hunger not individually, but rather by working together as a community. The Talmud explains that each Jewish community must establish a public fund to provide food for the hungry, and our sages explain that feeding the hungry is one of our most important responsibilities on earth: "When you are asked in the world to come, ‘What was your work?’ and you answer: ‘I fed the hungry,’ you will be told: ‘This is the gate of the Lord, enter into it, you who have fed the hungry’" (Midrash to Psalm 118:17).

Take Action!

Contact your Representative and urge him/her to cosponsor Rep. McGovern’s H. Res. 90, and oppose cuts to anti-hunger programs in the Farm Bill.

For more information about hunger, contact Legislative Assistant Raechel Banks at 202-387-2800.