WE COULD FEED THE ENTIRE WORLD, BUT AT WHAT COST??? An exploration into the economic effects of feeding 7 BILLION Research Conducted by Joel Daniels and Zach Nordlund

THE COST OF FEEDING 6,985,910,569  While researching on the internet we discovered numerous sources citing how much it is possible to spend on food per day in the United States. By comparing these studies and reaching the mean expenses we have concluded the following two figures, $2.50 a day and $7 a day.

 $2.50 is the amount necessary for the bare minimum, with little focus on health or portioning of the different food groups.  It would cost $17,464,776,430,000,000,000 to feed everyone in the world for ONE DAY with the BARE MINIMUM amount of food and nutrition, or 6,374,643,395,000,000,000,000 annually.  It would cost $782,061,327 a day to just feed the United States

 $7 a day would provide a substantial amount of food with adequate representation of each of the food groups for an individual.  At $7 a day it would cost $48,901,373,980,000,000,000 a day to feed the world.  $2,189,771,717 to feed the United States with healthy and substantial food for one day.

 According to bread.org, 13% of Americans live in poverty and are at risk for hunger. If government well fare programs gave $4 a day to cover food costs for individuals living in poverty, it would cost American taxpayers $162,240,000 a day. Therefore, it would cost everyone in America who is above the poverty line 60 cents a day, or $219 annually to feed the lower 13%.

 To theoretically “end world hunger” we would have to feed the 925 million people that struggle with hunger. Lets suppose it only costs $2.50 a day in the rest of the world as opposed to $4 a day in the United States. That is $2,312,500,000 a day to feed the entire world.  If the top 87% of the United States took it upon themselves to work to “end world hunger” it would cost $8.50 a day or $ a year.

 If the richest 1% of the United States took it upon themselves to “eradicate world hunger”, it would cost each person $740 a day or $269,819 annually.  In 2009, it took just $343,927 to join that elite group, according to newly released statistics from the Internal Revenue Service. Therefore, the top 1% could not possibly be responsible for helping the less fortunate.

 According to The Observer, a College Media Network  “This Halloween, the world population hit 7 billion people, a milestone that has generated increasing concern about how our world can provide the basic necessities of food, clothing, shelter and energy for more and more people.”  In 2010, one in seven people, or 925 million people total, experienced chronic, lasting hunger, and the sad part is that there is currently enough food being produced worldwide to feed all 7 billion of us.

 “The challenge lies in making the food accessible to people from both an economic and logistics standpoint.  Part of the problem is that 3 billion people live on $2 or less per day to pay for living expenses, and with rising food prices, it is becoming increasingly difficult for these people to access food. The unstable world economy and unhealthy job market are adding to the poverty problem.  Another part of the problem is waste. Did you know that only 25 percent of all food produced is actually eaten? The other 75 percent goes unused in a variety of ways, ranging from weather and crop deterioration, spoilage from transportation and holding issues, food processing plants, grocery store matters (especially with shelf life, expiration dates and the appearance of particular foods), restaurants and others.”

 So we have got the facts on world hunger, we can grow enough food to feed the entire world at its current population. However, these resources are not distributed equally and waste, surplus, and overconsumption are common in developed countries.  For 60 cents a day we could combat hunger in the United States, but this raises all sorts of questions.

 Is it our responsibility to provide for the wellbeing of others?  We worked hard for our money, why should we give it away?  Are only the wealthiest individuals responsible?  Should we only focus on our country, or should we, as the wealthiest nation in the world, care for other developing nations?

 "U.S. & World Population Clocks." U.S. Census Bureau. U.S. Census Bureau, jan 10, Web. 10 Jan   Luhby, Tami. "Who are the One Percent." CNN Money. CNN, October 29, Web. 10 Jan   "Can you feed yourself with $3.00 a day?." Weight of the Evidence. Weight of the Evidence, May 25, Web. 10 Jan   Fuhrman, Michelle. "Feeding 7 billion: trick or treat?." Observer. Observer, November 10, Web. 10 Jan   "About Hunger." Bread for the World. Bread for the World, n.d. Web. 10 Jan 