The White House this week announced that the Conference on Hunger, Nutrition, and Health will take place on September 28, 2022, while simultaneously announcing plans to release a national strategy to tackle hunger on the same date.
The conference, the first to be held since 1969, is built around what the White House has identified as five pillars:
Improve food access and affordability: End hunger by making it easier for everyone – including urban, suburban, rural, and Tribal communities – to access and afford food. For example, expand eligibility for and increase participation in food assistance programs and improve transportation to places where food is available.
Integrate nutrition and health: Prioritize the role of nutrition and food security in overall health, including disease prevention and management, and ensure that our health care system addresses the nutrition needs of all people.
Empower all consumers to make and have access to healthy choices: Foster environments that enable all people to easily make informed healthy choices, increase access to healthy food, encourage healthy workplace and school policies, and invest in public messaging and education campaigns that are culturally appropriate and resonate with specific communities.
Support physical activity for all: Make it easier for people to be more physically active (in part by ensuring that everyone has access to safe places to be active), increase awareness of the benefits of physical activity, and conduct research on and measure physical activity.
Enhance nutrition and food security research: Improve nutrition metrics, data collection, and research to inform nutrition and food security policy, particularly on issues of equity, access, and disparities.
In addition to the conference itself, the White House is encouraging anti-hunger and nutrition groups, community-based organizations, food companies, the health care community, trade associations, universities, philanthropy groups, local, state, territory, and Tribal governments to hold satellite events to address hunger and nutrition.
A frequently asked questions page on the conference can be found here.
