Blog Action Day Vs World Food Day

Today is Blog Action Day and bloggers around the world are talking about one thing - FOOD.

As we celebrate World Food Day, nearly a billion people on the planet still go to bed hungry every night. Yet this inexcusable and tragic reality that is faced by around 1 in 7 people is made all the more offensive by the fact that the world currently produces enough food. It is not a lack of food that is the problem but rather a broken food system that fails so many.

The world's population is growing and will reach 9 billion by 2050. This will present its own problems with demand for food rising by 70%, but what of the issues facing the world now:

- 40% of US corn crops end up in gas tanks instead of stomachs.

- 4 in 5 people lack access to social protection of any kind.

- The amount of arable land per head has almost halved since 1960.

- Consumers in rich countries may be wasting up to a quarter of the food they buy.

That is why Oxfam launched its GROW campaign earlier this year - to encourage people to share ideas for better ways to grow, share and live together and work towards a future where everyone on the planet always has enough to eat. During the next few days of GROW Week (October 15th - 22nd), we have a chance to take stock and strengthen our commitment to this more hopeful future.