The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints has answered a new appeal from the Ethiopian government and United Nations to supply food to save starving children and others suffering from hunger in Ethiopia, an African nation of 67 million people currently devastated by famine.
The church, which provided more than 3,000 tons of food to Ethiopia in March, is responding to the new requests with an additional 2,000 tons of supplementary food for the elderly, for expectant and lactating mothers and for children.
Harold C. Brown, managing director of Welfare Services for the church, and Garry R. Flake, director of humanitarian emergency response, traveled to Ethiopia last week to see first-hand how church food aid is being distributed by partner organizations
"In a lot of locations where we're giving food," Brown said, "if we didn't give food, there wouldn't be any. I mean it's just that simple. It isn't like there is an overabundance of food sitting in storehouses that will just flow to wherever there's a shortage. They are short of food."
The U.N. office responsible for coordinating humanitarian aid has reported that the food crisis in Ethiopia is deepening, with a dramatic deterioration in the situation over the past six to eight weeks.
The church is producing and shipping an additional 240 tons of Atmit, an Ethiopian porridge mix based on a centuries-old recipe. This supplemental food product is mixed and packaged in Salt Lake City at Welfare Square, a key element of the church's worldwide welfare and humanitarian program. Malnourished children and the elderly cannot digest whole grains and foods made with coarse flour. To recover, their stressed and tender digestive systems require frequent feedings of easily digestible food in small amounts. Atmit is a bland but nutritious mixture of oat flour, powdered milk, sugar, salt and supplemental vitamins and minerals. It is prepared with water and cooking oil.
The church's humanitarian service group evaluates and assesses needs with local officials to ensure that the aid provided will be put to good use.
The church sent food to Ethiopia in 1985 and again in 2000.
Those interested in helping with this and other church humanitarian efforts may contribute to the Humanitarian Aid Fund, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, 50 E. North Temple Street, Salt Lake City, UT 84150, telephone 801-240-1201.