1 billion people hungry on World Food Day

Did you toss out any food in the last day or two? The butt end of a loaf of bread, a tomato that went bad or leftover pasta that turned into a refrigerator science project? Someone somewhere could have used that food.

We Americans live for the most part in relative luxury, even in the deepest part of the economic downturn. But elsewhere, more than 1 billion people don't have enough to eat, according to a story in the San Francisco Chronicle, which quotes a United Nations report for World Food Day, which is today.

Instead of celebrating World Food Day, we face the sad fact that 1 person in every 7, or 15% of the world's population, are hungry. And yes, there are hungry people in the United States, but relatively few. The U.N. report lists 30 countries where food aid is a necessity; 20 of them are in Africa.

The world produces enough food for everyone. Economics and politics drive distribution, so not everyone gets fed.

America, continue to eat well, but eat less. We don't need all the calories. Maybe if we save just a few dollars on our own food consumption, we can contribute the savings to relief organizations, such as CARE USA, that are working to reduce poverty worldwide.

(Chart from www.sfgate.com)