America's Second Harvest Applauds U.S. Conference of Mayors/Sodexho Report

CHICAGO --- December 14, 2004 ---  The U.S. Conference of Mayors/Sodexho USA annual hunger and homelessness survey released today reports increased need for emergency food and shelter in 28 U.S. cities, especially among the nation's working poor.  Requests for emergency food assistance increased by an average of 14 percent in the past year.

"The report supports what we've seen at food banks throughout the nation this past year," said Bob Forney, President and CEO of America's Second Harvest – The Nation's Food Bank Network. "There has been a marked increase in the need for emergency food supplies. In addition to the economic forces that contribute to the pervasiveness of hunger, natural disasters have also spiked the need for more emergency food assistance, especially in Florida, where both the crops and the economy were devastated by hurricanes."

In a critique of the report, The Heritage Foundation  faults the methodology used in the survey, but acknowledges that other independent measures point to an existing problem of hunger in the U.S. The Heritage Foundation cites data from a U.S. Census Bureau/USDA report and America's Second Harvest research, indicating that during any given month in 2001, food pantries served an estimated 12.5 million people. Between 18 million and 24 million people relied on emergency food assistance in 2001.

"It is worth noting that the Mayors' report is not a year-to-year trend survey, but rather a snapshot of hunger and homelessness at a specific time in specific cities, as reported by emergency shelter and food providers in those surveyed cities," said Forney. "We hope that this renewed attention to the problem will inspire people to join in the fight against hunger by contributing to their local food banks during this holiday season and throughout the year."

For more information, please contact: Ross Fraser, Media Relations Manager, 312-263-2303, ext. 127