Eat local, feed global

Eating to help solve world hunger is a bit like having long showers to crack a drought, so why has Oxfam asked the public to pick up their forks for an upcoming campaign?

As part of the Eat Local, Feed Global campaign Oxfam has asked people to get together and share a meal, then donate to support Oxfam’s development and campaign work.

Participants can either eat at participating venues and make donations, or organise their own dinner party where guests are asked to make a contribution to Oxfam.

Eat Local, Feed Global will begin on October 4, just two days before World Food Day, and will run until October 21.

MasterChef winner Julie Goodwin has lent her support to the campaign, asking restaurants and cafes to help out.

“The world produces a surplus of food yet one in seven people go hungry every day,” Ms Goodwin said.

Oxfam Australia Executive Director Andrew Hewett encouraged venues and individuals to participate and help raise money to allow Oxfam to continue their important work.

“At Oxfam we are seeing a record number of food-related emergencies around the world as communities on the edge of poverty experience rising food prices and changing weather patterns,” Mr Hewett said.

“Oxfam is encouraging Australians to enjoy a meal with family or friends on Sunday 14 October and make a donation towards helping us tackle the underlying causes of hunger,” he said.

In 2011, Oxfam raised more than $90,000 as part of their World Food Day activities, with more than 60 venues participating and 250 Australians hosting events.

Oxfam’s call for participants came less than a week after the release of the organisation’s Extreme Weather, Extreme Prices report, which suggests the effect of climate change on future food prices is being underestimated.

The report says that food prices will have doubled by 2030, and will rise further than that expectation in the case of extreme weather events such as droughts, floods or high temperatures.