National Dairy Council Partners with Two U.S. Food Groups to Tackle the Hunger Dilemma
$1.8 million effort will work to eliminate hunger and promote healthy food choices.
Source: DMI news release
Feeding America joins with National Dairy Council and the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics to identify game-changing innovations in the field of nutrition and food security.
With a commitment of $1.8M over two years, National Dairy Council will take a leadership role in bringing together this unique effort between three organizations to help to eliminate hunger and promote healthy food choices.
“The work of National Dairy Council has focused on nutrition research, education and communication for nearly a century to encourage healthy eating patterns and lifestyles,” said Jean Ragalie, RD and President of National Dairy Council, which was founded by America’s dairy farmers.
“Because there is often a gap between the quantity of food that can be secured and the nutritional quality of that food, many of our nation’s hungry are also overweight,” Ragalie added. “We know that finding a solution to this problem will take everyone working together. I am excited about this collaboration, which we hope will raise awareness of the issue, educate thought leaders and the public to integrate sound nutrition principles in feeding programs and increase access to healthy foods.”
Recently, much national attention has been focused on the intersection of hunger and obesity in the U.S. Many families are forced to make difficult choices between securing enough food and prioritizing healthier foods that nourish and promote good health.
These three organizations are uniquely qualified to join together to tackle this issue by aligning assets:
• National Dairy Council, supported today by more than 51,000 dairy farmers, has 100 years of experience in nutrition research and education, bringing a diverse group of stakeholders, including health and wellness experts, farmers and food companies to the table.
• The Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics represents over 83,000 registered dietitians and is the largest organization of food and nutrition professionals in the world.
• Feeding America is the nation’s largest domestic hunger relief organization that works on the front line providing access to meals for 37M food insecure individuals each year.
This partnership encompasses the entire food cycle from production to distribution. All three organizations have established inroads into local communities (farmers, schools, registered dietitians, food banks) and will join forces to share expertise and resources, identify new ways of approaching food procurement, nutrition education and access, and will work to impact the way food insecure individuals nourish themselves and their families.
“This partnership with National Dairy Council, Feeding America, and the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics signals a bold, industry-wide effort to address the intersection of nutrition and food insecurity,” said Vicki Escarra, CEO of Feeding America. “Our combined resources, research, and expertise will make changes at a local level that ultimately will affect the health of our nation.”
The investment by National Dairy Council in national nutrition and food security efforts will underwrite a broad, industry-wide plan of action to:
• Raise awareness of the overweight/undernourished paradox
• Increase access to nutrient rich foods for food insecure people
• Educate all stakeholders about strategies to reduce hunger and promote healthy food choices
“The Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics and our members in all areas of food and nutrition practice look forward to working with Feeding America and National Dairy Council to develop workable strategies throughout the country that will end hunger and achieve food security,” said Ethan A. Bergman, RD and Academy President. “We are proud to support programs and practices that combat hunger and malnutrition, produce food security, promote self-sufficiency, educate consumers and health professionals alike, and are environmentally and economically sustainable. As the food and nutrition experts, registered dietitians who are members of the Academy are ready to continue and increase our involvement in developing innovative solutions to the twin problems of food insecurity and hunger.”
Learn more about the efforts on the issues of food security here.
