'700,000 US Children Went Hungry in 2007'
Some 691,000 children went hungry in the US in 2007, an alarming rise of 50 percent over the previous year, Agriculture Department reported.
Based on a US Department of Agriculture study conducted on 45,600 households representing approximately 118 million households in the US, some 69,000 American children were identified as having "very low food security."
The study showed that one in eight Americans accounting for nearly 11.9 million people, went hungry at some point last year.
James Weill, president of the Food Research and Action Center, said that the problem would be even bigger in 2008. He noted, "Based on the increased demand we're seeing this year at food stamp agencies, emergency kitchens, Women, Infants and Children clinics, across the entire social service support structure, there's every reason to think the increases in the number of hungry people will be very, very large."
The Washington Post reported on November 26 that the number of Americans on food stamps is poised to exceed 30 million for the first time this month, surpassing the historic high set in 2005 after Hurricane Katrina.
Analysts said the rise in unemployment --which hit 6.5 percent in October and is predicted to increase to 8 percent by the end of 2009-- and soaring food costs were the main reasons behind the jump.
In October, food and beverages' prices had jumped 6.1 percent over last year. Staples such as eggs and bread rose even faster.