The Hunger Institute

EPPC Global Management has launched the Hunger Institute to address the critical areas of Hunger, Poverty and Nutrition Policy in the United States and globally. The Hunger Institute will focus on Food Research, Nutrition Science and Policy.   

WHY?   

In Matthew 25:35 Jesus said: "I was hungry and you gave Me food; I was thirsty and you gave Me drink; I was a stranger and you took Me in..."

The Citizens Board of Inquiry Into Hunger and Malnutrition in America estimated that 14 million Americans were going hungry in 1968. Thirty years later, the U.S. Department of Agriculture reported that nearly 35 million Americans lived in households experiencing hunger and food insecurity. In the years between these two points in time, the extent of hunger has been the subject of sharp political debate and the object of sustained attention in the scientific and faith based community. Food Research, Nutrition Science and Policy Initiative (FRNSPI) understands it is going to take continual effort working to improve public policies to eradicate hunger and under-nutrition around the world.  We must attack the root causes of hunger and poverty by promoting effective and innovative community-based solutions that create self-reliance, economic justice and food security. Our focus on the particular needs of special populations: low-income children and families; populations with special needs due to age or physiologic status; ethnic, linguistic, and racial minorities; immigrants; groups with nutritional vulnerabilities related to under-nutrition, obesity, disability, and other conditions. We must create the political will to end hunger and the worst aspects of poverty.

The Food Research, Nutrition Science and Policy Initiative will focus on:

• Food security, hunger and poverty across the globe, especially in the United States.
• Policy as it affects the safety, integrity, nutritional quality, and accessibility of the food supply and the nutritional guidance given to citizens.
• Improving health and well being of low-income by increasing access to nutritious and affordable food.    
• Health and Nutrition communication to provide accurate information for consumers and organizations in ways that will promote healthy behaviors among people.

The Food Research, Nutrition Science and Policy Initiative will accomplish their goals in these areas using the following approaches:

• Education and training in food and nutrition policy
• Conferences, symposia and training opportunities for mid-career professionals and interested individuals and organizations
• Research and scholarship
• Produce reliable data on the number of people hungry 
• Facilitates research, community action, and professional practice to improve food security.
• Development of theoretical models of intervention
• Field application of methods
• Identifying the most successful approaches to alleviating problems of food insecurity and hunger and to improving the nutritional health of various populations
• Monitoring and evaluation of programs
• Effective communication of new knowledge to nutrition and health professionals, policy makers in government and in the private sector, and the public
• Advocacy for policy, regulation and programs designed to advance the health and nutritional status of the public.

In launching this initiative EPPC Global Management will be promoting policies that improve the lives of low-income children and families. The Food Research, Nutrition Science and Policy Initiative (FRNSPI) activities will include research and policy analysis, public education initiatives, and assistance to policy makers and organizations nationwide on poverty- and hunger-related issues. 

The Executive Director of the Food Research, Nutrition Science and Policy Initiative (FRNSPI)  will be Dr. Robert O'Bannon.   He will be assisted by Daniel Martin and Jennifer Bowman.