Industry Insights · 22min read
6 Established Organisations Working to End World Hunger
Looking for a corporate partnership? Eager to engage your team in your Corporate Social Responsibility activities? Join forces with these internationally recognised organisations and charities to fight starvation and hunger.
World hunger is seen by many as one of the most imminent threats to humankind. In fact, so much so that in 2015, the United Nations adopted Goal 2 - Zero Hunger as one of its Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). And in October 2020, the Norwegian Nobel Committee announced it was awarding the World Food Programme (WFP) Nobel Peace Prize for its efforts in combating hunger. While this momentum is a sign of hope, conflicts continue to rage on and wreak havoc in impoverished communities; meanwhile, changing climates are causing unprecedented destruction across the globe. And to make matters worse, the coronavirus pandemic is adding fuel to already existing fires. Food assistance organisations and charities are urgently scrambling to highlight the impending threat of a rapidly rising global hunger crisis. Now more than ever, governments, corporations and organisations must come together and scale up their efforts to create resilient food systems and provide solutions to end starvation and hunger.
But with the entire world now on the brink of an economic crisis, it has not been an easy year for charitable organisations that normally rely on monetary donations and physical volunteers. Since the start of the pandemic, the demand for philanthropic organisations’ services has soared while, at the same time, fundraising incomes have dropped drastically. According to The Guardian, studies are showing that up to one in ten charities in the UK may be bankrupt by December. However, with the end of the year closing in, we are also approaching peak CSR and donation season for corporations—a window in which many non-profits raise up to 50% of their annual funds.
At foodcircle, our founders have been committed to helping combat starvation and world hunger since the very beginning. And we’re proud that we collaborate with ShareTheMeal as a means of supporting those who need it most and fighting for a more sustainable supply chain. With hundreds, if not thousands, of hunger-related charities to choose from, it can be difficult for corporations or start-ups to decide where best to funnel charitable donations and resources.
Below, we’ve selected and highlighted six established organisations where you can be sure that your company’s involvement will have a direct and positive impact on the fight against world hunger. By highlighting each organisation’s area of focus, we hope to be able to help guide fellow actors in the food industry towards partnering with organisations that align with their own visions, missions and values.
Action Against Hunger
Action Against Hunger was founded in France as Action Contre la Faim in 1979, and now has subsidiary organisations in Canada, Germany, Spain, the UK, and the US. With over 8,000 field staff currently actively engaged in ending world hunger in 45+ countries, Action Against Hunger takes great pride in having established itself as a leading global humanitarian organisation.
The UK branch is engaged in the following fields: Nutrition, Emergencies, Advocacy, and Innovation, Learning and Strategic Foresight. The latter is an incredibly exciting sphere in the digital age because, rather than operating in a reactive environment—as most humanitarian organisations do—this area focuses on foresight based on analytical research. “Our expert analysts provide insight, analysis and research on topics as varied as migration, food security, demography, counterterrorism, political volatility and nutrition to help colleagues and partners around the world to better understand the contexts we work in and how these will change.”
European Food Banks Federation
The European Food Banks Federation’s (FEBA) mission is “To reduce hunger and malnutrition through the fight against food waste and the support and development of Food Banks in countries where they are most needed.” FEBA is guided by this mission in its execution of the following three core activities: strengthening its network, developing food banks, and engaging in advocacy and awareness-raising initiatives. In 2019, FEBA successfully redistributed 786,000 tons of food via 45,283 charities across Europe. As a result, 9.5 million deprived people were able to receive aid and assistance.
Food For Life Global
Veganism forms the core of Food For Life’s action programmes against hunger, and the organisation identifies spiritual inequality as a root cause of starvation. The organisation’s diverse and highly localised initiatives are united by the following principles: welfare, hospitality, non-violence, health, education and animal advocacy. Every day, Food For Life currently serves around 2 million meals to people around the world via 211 affiliate projects. Its headquarters are located in Delaware, USA and Ljubljana, Slovenia. As the largest vegan food relief fund in the world, Food For Life acts as a pioneer in the propagation of plant-based aid and solutions.
The Hunger Project
Empowering people, ending hunger—The Hunger Project is a global organisation striving to break the cycle of poverty by creating authentic partnerships. The organisation promotes empowerment, leadership and self-reliance via women-centred and community-led approach. Branches in so-called ‘Partner Countries’, such as Germany, the Netherlands and the United Kingdom, are crucial to raising funds, promoting awareness, and developing programs further.
In light of the pandemic, The Hunger Project UK mobilised a series of initiatives that empower especially vulnerable communities to take action into their own hands. Since the start of the pandemic, The Hunger Project has successfully activated over 500,000 local leaders in communities across 13 countries to help convey accurate information, contain the spread, and raise awareness about the virus.
ShareTheMeal
Did you know that it can take only 80 cents to feed one child for a day? Initiated by the WFP, ShareTheMeal is an exciting app that’s actively helping raise donations to provide for people in need around the globe at minimal cost. The app has successfully delivered over 86 million meals to impoverished people’s tables in 83 countries to date. The Berlin-based team of volunteers ambitiously seeks to multiply this number ten-fold over the next five years, which would bring the total number of meals delivered to 800 million.
United Nations World Food Programme
And last, but certainly not least, the world’s largest humanitarian organisation—the WFP is dedicated to eradicating poverty and building resilient and sustainable communities across the globe. The WFPs key areas of focus are climate action, disaster risk reduction, gender equality, nutrition, smallholder market support, social protection and safety nets, and sustainable livelihoods and ecosystems. In 2019, WFP’s work spanned 88 countries and reached 97 million people.
Imagery: (1) Ben White, (2) Isaiah Rustadand, and (3) Sujith Devanagari via unsplash.com | Videos: (1) Fardosa explains our response to coronavirus in Somalia - Action Against Hunger UK, (2) About the European Food Banks Federation - FEBA, (3) Uniting the World Through Pure Food - Food For Life Documentary, (4) There Is No Lockdown on Hope: The Hunger Project's COVID-19 Response - World Hunger Day, (5) Hunger is Solvable - Share the Meal, and (6) WFP Supply Chain - World Food Programme