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World Food Day: 6 ways we’re tackling hunger

Today – October 16 – is World Food Day.

Having access to nutritious food is something that many of us take for granted.

But there are millions of children around the world who don’t have enough to eat – and the consequences can be catastrophic.

1 in 4 children in poor countries suffer permanent damage to both their bodies and minds because as young children they didn’t get the nutritious food they need.

We’re determined to tackle hunger.

Here are just some of the things we do to make sure that children get the food they need.

1.    Provide food and nutrition

Save the Children Refugeee Syria Lesvos Food
Husn* from Syria eats plain bread which her family has got from food handouts in Lesvos.

Whether we’re supplying refugees in Greece with hot meals or giving millions of children vital vitamins, key to our hunger work is simply providing children with the nutrition they need.

2.    Give grants and vouchers

Save the Children World Food Day
Olan*, 4 years old, and Kajin*, 6 years old, stand with a shopping cart full of food that their parents are buying using World Food Programme (WFP) funded Food Vouchers.

We also provide grants and food vouchers for those who cannot afford food. In places like Iraq, where many families who have been forced to leave their homes, we distribute one WFP-funded Food Voucher worth $25 to families per month, to help them buy the basic food that they need.

3.    Nutrition training

Save the Children Mozambique Food
A woman in Mozambique holds Thethe (pronounced Jeje), one of many local plants used to supplement food when cooking.

Also key to this project is giving advice on nutrition. Our staff and volunteers train communities and individuals on everything from how to prepare meals for a balanced diet to growing food and eating during pregnancy.

4.    Provide malnutrition treatment

Save the Children Malnutrition Treatment South Sudan
Rebecca holds her daughter Rachael*, 11 months, while she eats high nutrient peanut paste after being treated for Severe Acute Malnutrition at a Save the Children stabilisation centre in South Sudan.

Many children around the world are suffering from severe malnutrition. We diagnose and treat children with life-saving items such as peanut paste and therapeutic milk.

5.    Lobby world leaders

Action 2015 New York Save the Children
Thousands of people took to the streets of New York on September 24 to call on governments to implement the new Global Goals.

We also put pressure on world leaders to make sure that all children have access to food. Most recently, we’ve been doing this through action/2015 – a coalition of charities and organisations that have come together to make sure that 17 Global Goals are reached. One of those goals in No Hunger.

6.    Prevent food crises

Save the Children Yemen malnutrition
Ali*, 4 months old, is suffering from Severe Acute Malnutrition and has been admitted into the Outpatient Therapeutic Programme at Sabeen Hospital in Yemen.

As well as responding to food crises when they happen, we also try to predict when and where they might occur. We do this through our Household Economy Approach, which has been developed over decades and helped millions of children.

Please donate now to help us continue our life-saving work.

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