New Farm Bill Helps America's Food Pantries

Floor Speech

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Mr. THOMPSON of Pennsylvania. Mr. Speaker, during the holiday season, many people step up to help their neighbors in need. Americans are generous and charitable with their time and energy through both monetary donations and volunteer opportunities.

Food pantries play an important role all year long in communities across America. In 2017, an estimated 15 million households in the United States were food insecure, which means they lack consistent access to a sufficient quantity of affordable, nutritious food.

While this number has decreased from previous years, there is much work yet to be done. That is why, as chairman of the Nutrition Subcommittee on the Agriculture Committee, I advocated for an increase in TEFAP dollars in the 2018 farm bill.

TEFAP stands for The Emergency Food Assistance Program. Along with donations, TEFAP funding is the cornerstone of our food banks.

I am pleased that we were able to increase funding for this important lifeline for so many. Food banks are meeting the needs for low-income Americans, the working poor, and those who have fallen on hard times. We must always work towards the ultimate goal of ending hunger in America.

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