Food and agriculture

Archive for 'Food and agriculture'

Farm bill and food aid: Congress debates key legislation

Congress has begun debating a massive farm bill that affects struggling families as well as those who make their living from agriculture: Food stamps and other federal nutrition programs account for about 80 percent of the $100 billion in annual spending under the legislation. ReligionLink explores the role faith groups are playing in shaping the debate.

Hunger amid plenty: The moral dilemmas of farming, food and poverty

Thanksgiving is a time when most Americans celebrate their bounty — and anti-poverty groups remind them how many others still go hungry. But this year the urgency is even greater, and the problems go well beyond a seasonal appeal. Indeed, the land of plenty has plenty of people experiencing hunger, as new reports show.

Gardening after Eden: the ethics of food production

The crocuses are up, the days are growing longer, and Earth Day is almost here. Must be spring. And in back yards and window boxes – and outside houses of worship across the country – members are turning the soil and planting gardens. But it’s not just the lush beauty of flowers, plants and trees [...]

Animals and religion: A guide to issues, organizations and experts

As concern for the environment has grown in faith communities, a greater emphasis has fallen on how people care for and treat animals. The verse in Genesis – a text sacred to Judaism, Christianity and Islam – that gives mankind “dominion” over the animals is no longer universally interpreted as awarding carte blanche over domestic, [...]

World hunger worsens

World hunger has reached crisis proportions because of a confluence of agricultural and economic factors. The situation is so bad – with shortages, rocketing prices and political unrest – that Josette Sheeran, executive director of the United Nations World Food Program, has called it “a silent tsunami.” As governments and organizations scramble to respond, the [...]

Religious reformers target farm bill

UPDATED OCT. 29, 2007 – Religious groups bolted into the debate over U.S. farm policy this year, linking it with poverty, nutrition and environmentalism. They are pushing for reforms as Congress hammers out a hotly debated farm bill, as it does every five years or so. The House passed a farm bill in July, and [...]