UK charities launch campaign: "Enough Food for Everyone IF..."

(Vatican Radio) In the UK 100 major charities and faith groups are launching a new anti-hunger campaign on Wednesday called “Enough Food for Everyone IF” The campaign is challenging the British Prime Minister David Cameron to tackle 4 big “IFs” to help there be enough food for everyone.

But what are these four “IF’s”? To find out more, Vatican Radio’s Susy Hodges spoke to Neil Thorns, Director of Advocacy at the London-based Catholic Development agency, CAFOD, which is one of the charities taking part in this campaign.

Listen to the extended interview with Thorns:

Thorns says CAFOD and the other charities believe that "hunger is the greatest scandal of our age", especially given that "the world is already producing enough food for everybody." He says they are challenging the British government to tackle the four big IF's which include making sure that "poor farmers aren't forced off their land" and using it "to grow biofuels rather than food," calling on governments and investors "to be more transparent" in their deals in poor countries, stop big companies dodging tax and calling on governments to keep their promises on aid.

Asked whether these aims are achievable, Thorns says the charities involved in the campaign have based them on what they think "is realistic" because, he adds, "we want companies to serve society better. It's something as a Catholic development agency we feel very strongly about... business should be serving society, not serving profit."