The following letter dated March 1 and signed by a total of 92 organizations and companies representing labor, agricultural, maritime, industrial, humanitarian, port and transportation interests was sent to Chairwoman of the Senate Appropriations Committee's Subcommittee on Agriculture Tammy Baldwin (D-WI) and Ranking Member John Hoeven (R-ND), and to Chairman of the House of Representatives Appropriations Committee's Subcommittee on Agriculture Sanford Bishop (D-GA) and Ranking Member Jeff Fortenberry (R-NE).

Each year our nation's international food aid programs, including P.L. 480 Title II Food for Peace, Food for Progress, and McGovern-Dole International Food for Education within the Agriculture, Rural Development, Food and Drug Administration, and Related Agencies appropriations bill, help reach millions of vulnerable people around the world. These programs have enjoyed significant bipartisan support for more than 60 years. We, the undersigned organizations, respectfully request Congress continue to fully support these programs and that the Fiscal Year 2022 agriculture appropriations funding for these critical accounts be increased to at least $2.2 billion.

Global food assistance is required as drought, continuing conflict, and other crises persist around the world. Chronic and acute hunger have continued to rise and the U.N. World Food Programme warns that the number of people facing crisis levels of food insecurity may increase to 270 million over the next year, the result of COVID-19, ongoing conflict and climate related extreme events. USAID's Famine Early Warning System Network estimated that approximately 113 million people were in need of humanitarian food assistance in 2020, a roughly 25 percent increase in needs relative to anticipated 2020 needs before the COVID-19 pandemic. With hunger on the rise, now is the time for America to continue its leadership role in the world by showing full support for its international food security programs.

Food assistance programs not only benefit the recipients, but also U.S. economic and national security interests. Food aid, in all its forms, is made available through these programs usually bearing the U.S. flag and/or marked "from the American people." By furthering stability in fragile countries and sparking hope in countless people who are struggling to survive, U.S. strategic interests are protected and expanded. Ultimately, these kinds of foreign assistance programs help create a firm foundation for vulnerable communities to grow and prosper, which is why many former food aid recipient countries are now among the most important U.S. trading partners.

The use of American grown commodities as food aid has been a cornerstone of U.S. foreign assistance programs for decades and U.S. food aid has continually evolved and adapted to meet changing needs. Using a combination of U.S. commodities, cash, vouchers, and locally purchased food, the U.S. has worked to expedite hunger relief, increase resilience and save countless lives. Through a joint public-private partnership, American farmers, fishing families, mariners, port workers, private voluntary organizations (PVOs), and the U.S. Government have developed the strongest frontline response to urgent global food insecurity. Food aid is a tangible source of hope to those in need, and American stakeholders take great pride in their support for the world's most vulnerable people through these programs.

While our organizations at times have policy differences, we stand united in our belief that U.S. food aid programs are among the world's most critical foreign assistance programs, save countless lives, bolster our nation's and global security, and help millions in need around the world. We ask that you continue the lifesaving and life improving work of food aid by increasing the agriculture appropriations funding in Fiscal Year 2022 to at least $2.2 billion to carry out the necessary and vital work accomplished in the P.L. 480 Title II Food for Peace, Food for Progress, and McGovern-Dole programs.

Signing the letter were: ADM; Agricor; Alaska Seafood Marketing Institute; Alliance to End Hunger; American Association of Port Authorities; American Farm Bureau Federation; American Maritime Congress; American Maritime Officers; American Maritime Officers Service; American President Lines LLC; American Pulse Association; American Soybean Association; Bold Ocean LLC; Bread for the World; Breedlove Foods Inc.; Bunge North America; Cantera Partners; CARE USA; Catholic Relief Services; Didion Milling Inc.; DSM North America; Edesia; Euro-America Shipping & Trade Inc.; Fettig & Donalty; Inc.; Food for the Hungry; Global Communities; Maritime Institute (MIRAID); National Association of Wheat Growers; National Barley Growers Association; National Cooperative Business Association CLUSA International; National Corn Growers Association; National Council of Farmer Cooperatives; National Milk Producers Federation; National Sorghum Producers; Navy League of the United States; North American Millers' Association; North Dakota Farmers Union; North Dakota Grain Growers Association; PCI, a Global Communities Partner; Port of Grays Harbor; Port of Kalama; Port of Lake Charles; Port of New Orleans; Port of Tacoma; Port of Vancouver USA; Potomac Maritime, LLC; Potomac Shipping International, LLC; Puget Sound Port Council; REPCO; Sailors' Union of the Pacific; Save the Children; Global Food & Nutrition Inc.; GrainPro Incorporated; Hapag-Lloyd USA, LLC; Heartland Goodwill Enterprises; Humanity & Inclusion; ILWU Local 25; ILWU Local 4; ILWU Local 98; ILWU Washington Area District Council; InterAction; International Longshore & Warehouse Union (ILWU); International Longshore and Warehouse Union, Local 23; International Organization of Masters, Mates & Pilots; Kansas Grain Sorghum Producers Association; Kendall Packaging Corp.; Liberty Maritime Corporation; LifeLine Foods, LLC; Mana Nutrition; Marine Engineers' Beneficial Association; Marine Firemen, Oilers, Watertenders; and Wipers Association; Schuyler Line Navigation Company; Seafarers International Union; Sealift Incorporated; SeaTac Packaging; Semo Milling; The Port of Virginia; Transportation Institute; TVS; U.S. Canola Association; U.S. Dry Bean Council; U.S. Durum Growers Association; U.S. Ocean LLC; U.S. Pea and Lentil Trade Association; USA Dry Pea and Lentil Council; USA Maritime; USA Rice; Washington Public Ports Association; Wisconsin & Southern Railroad/Watco; Wisconsin Corn Growers Association; World Food Program USA; and World Vision.