Page:United States Statutes at Large Volume 102 Part 2.djvu/896

 102 STAT. 1900

PUBLIC LAW 100-451—SEPT. 28, 1988

Public Law 100-451 100th Congress Joint Resolution Sept. 28, 1988 [S.J. Res. 336]

Designating October 16, 1988, as "World Food Day".

Whereas hunger and malnutrition remain daily facts of life for hundreds of millions of people throughout the world; Whereas the children of the world suffer the most serious effects of hunger and malnutrition, with millions of children dying each year from hunger-related illness and disease, and many others suffering permanent physical or mental impairment because of vitamin or protein deficiencies; Whereas the United States and the people of the United States have a long tradition of demonstrating humanitarian concern for the hungry and malnourished people of the world, recently manifested by the American response to African famine; Whereas efforts to resolve the world hunger problem are critical to the maintenance of world peace and, therefore, to the security of the United States; Whereas the Congress is particularly concerned with the continuing food problems of Africa and is supportive of the efforts being made there to reform and rationalize agricultural policies to better meet the food needs of their peoples; Whereas the United States, as the largest producer and trader of food in the world, has a key role to play in assisting countries and people to improve their ability to feed themselves; Whereas although progress has been made in reducing the incidence • of hunger and malnutrition in the United States, certain groups, notably Native Americans, migrant workers, the elderly, and children, remain vulnerable to malnutrition and related diseases; Whereas the Congress is acutely aware of the paradox of enormous surplus production capacity in the United States despite the desperate need for food by people throughout the world; Whereas the United States and other countries should develop and continually evaluate national policies concerning food, farmland, and nutrition to achieve the well-being and protection of all people and particularly those most vulnerable to malnutrition and related diseases; Whereas improved agricultural policies, including farmer incentives, are necessary in many developing countries to increase food production and economic growth; Whereas private enterprise and the primacy of the independent family farmer have been basic to the development of an agricultural economy in the United States and have made the United States capable of meeting the food needs of most of the people of the United States; Whereas increasing farm foreclosures threaten to destroy the independent family farmer and weaken the agricultural economy in the United States; Whereas conservation of natural resources is necessary for the United States to remain the largest producer of food in the world

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