Media CenterCRS Commends Senate Farm Bill for International Food Assistance Provisions
Photo by Oscar Leiva/Silverlight for CRS
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
CONTACT:
Kim Pozniak
Catholic Relief Services
[email protected]
410-951-7281
BALTIMORE, MD, June 14, 2018 -- Catholic Relief Services (CRS) has joined more than two dozen U.S.-based charities and faith-based organizations in praising the bipartisan Senate Farm Bill, which includes many provisions that affect food and agriculture assistance for the poor around the world.
The group says the bill – formally known as the Agriculture Improvement Act of 2018 – “not only reaffirms Congressional support for international food security programs authorized in the Farm Bill, but also strengthens them with common sense changes that will make them more effective.”
Those changes include removing the requirement to support agriculture development work by selling food commodities, known as monetization, and recognizing the importance of the Community Development Fund in Title II Development Food Security Activities.
“These enhancements will increase the efficiency and effectiveness of the Food for Peace Program, allowing more people to be reached with existing resources,” the statement says.
The group did call on Congress to take one more step: ending so-called cargo preference that requires food aid to be carried on U.S.-flagged ships, saying that it leads to “directing more food aid dollars towards ocean freight carriers and fewer to the purchase of food for people in need.”
“We urge Congress, whether in the Farm Bill or in other legislative vehicles, to reduce the impact of cargo preference on international food aid programs,” the group states.
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Catholic Relief Services is the official international humanitarian agency of the Catholic community in the United States. The agency alleviates suffering and provides assistance to people in need in more than 100 countries, without regard to race, religion or nationality. CRS’ relief and development work is accomplished through programs of emergency response, HIV, health, agriculture, education, microfinance and peacebuilding. For more information, please visit crs.org or crsespanol.org and follow CRS on social media: Facebook, @CatholicRelief, @CRSnews, YouTube, Instagram and Pinterest.
Senior Writer
Based in Baltimore, MD
As Senior Writer, Michael is responsible for much of the editorial production of the Communications Unit: press releases, op-eds, speeches, etc. He also is a supervisor in the department overseeing the work of three communications staff in Asia, Africa and the United States.
Before joining CRS is 2008, Michael had a 35-year career at the...More
