The World Food Prize is turning 40 and plans to celebrate the milestone by spotlighting iconic Iowans and locations.
The foundation launched its “One-of-a-Kind” campaign to honor its Iowa roots. Each month, the organization will be in a different part of the state, recognizing another Iowan who has made a significant impact on food security.
World Food Prize visits Ames for George Washington Carver Day
Dr. George Washington Carver and Iowa State University were the first stop on the World Food Prize campaign trail. Carver was Iowa State’s first black student and faculty member. He taught innovative agricultural lessons for many years.
George Washington Carver Day is celebrated annually on Feb. 1, “to remember and honor George Washington Carver’s work ethic and inspiring innovation, and to help young people understand the extraordinary opportunities in science – and life,” according to Iowa State’s website.
CEO Tom Vilsack visited Ames High School and the Ames Regional Economic Alliance on Friday, Jan. 30, to discuss how Carver’s legacy connects to today’s global food security challenges.
He hopes the campaign educates Iowans and prompts them to share more iconic Iowa individuals and places.
“There are a lot of interesting people that came from Iowa, and there are a lot of locations that are pretty iconic,” Vilsack said. “But it’s important for Iowans to have a better understanding of things like this in the state so that we can convince our kids and our grandkids that there’s a state worth building and growing and investing in.”
What is the World Food Prize?
The World Food Prize is an annual $500,000 award to inspire achievements in improving the quality, quantity and availability of food in the world.
The award and foundation were started in 1986 by Nobel Peace Prize winner Dr. Norman Borlaug. The prize is announced in the spring and presented on or around Oct. 16, UN World Food Day.
The World Food Prize is asking supporters to participate in a “40 for 40” campaign, or make donations of $40 to mark its 40th anniversary.
Tom Vilsack addresses food insecurity
Food and nutrition insecurity are far more widespread than many people realize and are part of the same problem, Vilsack said.
“When we talk about food security, people usually are talking about the quantity of food; when you talk about nutrition insecurity, it’s about the nutritional value,” Vilsack said. “Because I could feed you, but I could not necessarily feed you well. So there are challenges everywhere.”
He said necessary strategies to reduce insecurity include creating jobs with sufficient income; food assistance programs like the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP); and food banks and pantries providing assistance.
World Food Prize CEO thinks school lunches should be free
Vilsack said free school lunches for all students is “the right thing to do.”
He said schools would be better off if they didn’t have to deal with the administrative hassle of distinguishing between kids who can afford lunch, kids who can afford some of it, and kids who can’t afford any.
“By creating a universal free meal program which is reimbursed by the federal government, you are essentially easing the administrative burden and the cost of the program on your local school district,” Vilsack said. “It can help squeeze and stretch those school budgets so that they have a little extra cash, whether it’s paying teachers more, having an AP course that they can’t afford otherwise, doing some infrastructure improvement.”
The foundation has several youth education programs to inspire students. To learn more, visit their website: www.worldfoodprize.org.
The World Food Prize has not yet revealed where they are headed next or who they’ll profile. Vilsack said they hope to build suspense by announcing just before their visit.
Celia Brocker is a government, crime, political and education reporter for the Ames Tribune. She can be reached at CBrocker@gannett.com.
This article originally appeared on Ames Tribune: What we learned from World Food Prize’s visit to Ames for GW Carver Day
Reporting by Celia Brocker, Ames Tribune / Ames Tribune
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