Meds & Food for Kids Launches a Public Forum Focused on Proven Solutions to End Hunger
ST. LOUIS – May 9, 2023 - The inaugural forum of “Zero Hunger: Doing What Works” will take place on June 8, 2023, engaging leading experts in a public discussion that focuses on the global hunger catastrophe and proven strategies aimed at achieving the United Nations' goal of a world free of hunger by 2030.
The forum is presented by Meds & Foods for Kids in partnership with:
The United Nations’ Agenda for Sustainable Development, adopted by all member states in 2015, is a “shared blueprint for peace and prosperity for people and the planet, now and into the future.” Their Sustainable Development Goal 2 is “Zero Hunger: End hunger, achieve food security and improved nutrition and promote sustainable agriculture.” Meds & Foods for Kids is part of the international solution, saving the lives of over 700,000 children with ready-to-use therapeutic food produced in Haiti and distributed to 17 other countries in partnership with UNICEF.
However, the combination of climate change and conflict is transforming the hunger crisis into a catastrophe affecting an entire generation of children around the world. Food insecurity has more than doubled since 2020, and acute malnutrition affects 60 million children globally, putting them at imminent risk of death, illness and long-term, irreversible developmental impairments. For the first time ever, there are more children in need of therapeutic food to treat malnutrition than can be produced with current infrastructure.
A daily treatment with ready-to-use therapeutic food (RUTF) for just a few weeks is successful with 92 percent of malnourished children treated. This miracle answer for starving children can be used anywhere, is highly effective, can be administered at home by any adult, portable, has a long shelf life and doesn’t require refrigeration or clean water. Yet, it’s available to just one in five of the severely malnourished children who need it.
Zero Hunger: Doing What Works is a public discussion featuring a keynote address by Roger Thurow, expert on global famine and hunger, and author of numerous articles and books on the impact of hunger, starvation and famine. Following his comments, Lora Iannotti, PhD will moderate a question and answer session. Dr. Iannotti, professor at Brown School at Washington University in St. Louis has specialized expertise in maternal and young child nutrition and nutrient deficiencies. Patricia B. Wolff, MD, is the founder and medical director of Meds & Foods for Kids. Dr. Wolff will share her perspective from three decades of experience in Haiti where local workers produce ready-to-use therapeutic food (RUTF), distributed to 17 additional countries by UNICEF.
About the Forum:
Thursday, June 8, 2023, from 11:00am - 2:00pm at The Ritz-Carlton 100 Carondelet Plaza, St. Louis, MO 63105.
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About the Speakers:
Roger Thurow is senior fellow on global food and agriculture with the Chicago Council on Global Affairs. He is an award-winning 30-year veteran a former foreign correspondent with the Wall Street Journal, where he reported on famine and hunger. He is recognized internationally and has authored several books, including: "The Last Hunger Season: A year in an African Farm Community on the Brink of Change," "Enough: Why the World's Poorest Starve in an Age of Plenty," and "The First 1,000 Days: A Crucial Time for Mothers and Children."
Lora Iannotti, PhD, professor at the Brown School at Washington University in St. Louis, applies epidemiological methods to investigate interventions aimed at reducing stunted growth and development. Dr. Iannotti leads projects in Haiti, Ecuador, and East Africa. She is founder and director of the E3 Nutrition Lab, working to identify economically affordable, environmentally sustainable, and evolutionarily appropriate nutrition solutions globally. Prior to pursuing her PhD at Johns Hopkins University Bloomberg School of Public Health, Dr. Iannotti worked for over ten years with UN agencies and non-governmental organizations on nutrition and food security programming and policy.
Patricia B. Wolff, MD, is the founder and medical director of St. Louis-based Meds & Food for Kids which manufactures ready-to-use-therapeutic food (RUTF), distributed to 18 countries in partnership with UNICEF and others. Dr. Wolff founded the organization in 2003. She has been recognized for her service to children with numerous awards, including Humanitarian of the Year Award from the World Affairs Council, and the Global Stewardship Award from the St. Louis Peace Corps Association. Dr. Wolff is Professor Emerita of Clinical Pediatrics at Washington University.
About Meds & Foods For Kids
Now in its 20th year, Meds & Food for Kids is dedicated to meeting the essential nutritional needs of malnourished children, pregnant and nursing women and school children in 18 countries using ready-to-use-therapeutic food (RUTF) produced in Cap-Haitien, Haiti. By transferring skills and knowledge to Haitian men and women and engaging farmers to source local raw materials, Meds & Food for Kids breaks the cycle of poverty and sustainably stimulates economic development. https://www.mfkhaiti.org/
