Many US Children Hungry

ONE in eight American children - about 5.5 million young people under 12 - is hungry, a new survey made public Tuesday by a private anti-hunger group has found. An additional 6 million children under 12 are at risk of hunger, according to the survey by the Food Research and Action Center. "Clearly our findings have important implications for the entire nation and beg for a swift and sweeping response," FRAC executive director Robert Fersh told reporters.

"We have more than enough food to ensure that every child is properly fed; it is simply a matter of making this food accessible to all who need it," he added.

The study was enthusiastically endorsed by numerous members of Congress and the Department of Agriculture. It is based on hour-long interviews with 2,335 low-income families with children under age 12. The families were spread over seven sites across the United States, chosen as representative of the US population.