Agricultural Programs for a Safer, Stronger, and More Prosperous America

In June, Bread for the World’s 50th Anniversary Celebration and Advocacy Summit in Washington, D.C. brought together over 500 of our grassroots faith and college leaders for three days of policy discussions and advocacy. We met with our elected leaders in Congress, urging them to approve vital funding for U.S. programs that reduce hunger among children and families in the United States and around the globe. Bread’s Nourish Our Future (NOF) Campaign centers youth through programs such as Food for Peace, the McGovern-Dole Food for Education Program, and Feed the Future –programs that are key for making America safe, strong, and prosperous.

According to the most recent Hunger Hotspots report, published by the World Food Programme (WFP) and the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), hunger and malnutrition pose an immediate threat to the lives of people in more than a dozen countries and territories. The update, for June through October 2025, identifies the five situations “of highest concern” as Gaza, Sudan, South Sudan, Haiti, and Mali. Immediate humanitarian assistance is essential to preventing further loss of life. In such emergencies, a large share of deaths are among children younger than 5.

The desperation of millions of people far away puts the United States at risk. Food for Peace, created in the 1950s under President Eisenhower, is a key part of our country’s “soft power,” influence derived not from military strength but from economic, humanitarian, and other cooperative policies. For 70 years, Food for Peace has maintained a strong record of protecting the United States through food assistance, made possible by the generosity of the American people. The program has reached more than 4 billion people in 150 countries on four continents.

The McGovern-Dole Food for Education Program provides school meals to children through food commodities supplied by U.S. farmers and delivered to schools in lower-income countries. The program also supports local producers to supply fresh fruits and vegetables. In FY 2023, McGovern-Dole provided nutritious school meals to more than 2.5 million food-insecure children in 34 countries.

McGovern-Dole is a bipartisan initiative founded 23 years ago by U.S. Senators George McGovern (D-SD) and Robert Dole (R-KS). In 2008, they were awarded the World Food Prize for their work to end hunger among children. The program ensures that children have the nutritious food they need to focus on learning in school. The meals also encourage parents to send their children, particularly girls, to school. McGovern-Dole reflects the reality that education is key to better opportunities for all and a safer, stronger, and more prosperous world. 

Feed the Future is a U.S. international assistance program focused on longer-term development. One of its objectives is to support the agricultural sectors of countries that have emerged from hunger emergencies, enabling them to become more resilient to future shocks. Since its founding in 2010, it has brought 23.4 million people over the poverty line and prevented stunting among 3.4 million children in 20 countries. Stunting is the lifelong irreversible damage to children’s health and development caused by malnutrition very early in life.

Feed the Future develops its programs with support from the Consultative Group of International Agricultural Research (CGIAR) and its 15 global research centers. The United States is a founding member of CGIAR and continues to champion its work. Leading U.S. agricultural economists, researchers, and farmers work at regional institutes, such as the International Institute of Tropical Agriculture (IITA), whose goals include strengthening U.S. trade and food security interests.

CGIAR’s work over 50 years and its network of more than 3,000 partners—from government, academia, the private sector, and nonprofits in 89 countries—enables it to respond to emerging food security needs. In the recent past, CGIAR, working through Feed the Future, partnered with 80 U.S. colleges and universities across 40 states that house Agricultural Innovation Labs. In April, CGIAR hosted its 2025 Science Week, which brought together U.S., global, and regional leaders in research, policy, and development to plan more effective ways of achieving food and nutrition security. Bread champions the work of CGIAR and was invited to participate in Science Week this year.

Lifesaving programs such as Food for Peace, McGovern-Dole, and Feed the Future share the common thread of U.S. ingenuity and soft power at its best. Bread continues to work to build a world where Americans at home and abroad, and people around the world, have more food security, more peaceful conditions, and more opportunities to build prosperity. This is a legacy worth preserving for the future.

Abiola Afolayan is Director, Policy and Research Institute, with Bread for the World.