Proverbs 22:9 A generous person will be blessed, for he gives some of his food to the poor.

The Bible is very clear in its command to feed the hungry. This is a command that is mentioned many times in both the Old and New Testaments, from Isaiah to Luke. We’re called to share our food with the hungry (Isaiah 58:7-10), not to turn a blind eye to the poor (Proverbs 21:13), and even to feed our enemies (Proverbs 25:21). 

However, perhaps the most famous example is in the gospel of Matthew while Jesus was speaking to his disciples. Here we are told that by feeding the hungry and serving the poor we are in turn serving God.

“Then the King will say to those on his right, ‘Come, you who are blessed by my Father; take your inheritance, the kingdom prepared for you since the creation of the world. For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in, I needed clothes and you clothed me, I was sick and you looked after me, I was in prison and you came to visit me.’ 

“Then the righteous will answer him, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you something to drink?  When did we see you a stranger and invite you in, or needing clothes and clothe you?  When did we see you sick or in prison and go to visit you?’  

“The King will reply, ‘Truly I tell you, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me.’

Matthew 25:34-40

One in nine people globally are currently classed as hungry or malnourished with the biggest cause of hunger being poverty. The causes of poverty include poor people's lack of resources, an extremely unequal income distribution in the world and within specific countries, conflict, and hunger itself. 30 million more people were affected by hunger as a result of the coronavirus pandemic.  

But this isn’t just an issue that is happening in faraway places, in Europe and Central Asia, the number of severely food insecure people grew by 7 million in 2020 to 22 million, while those experiencing moderate or severe food insecurity (lacking access to safe, nutritious and adequate food) grew by 14 million to 111 million which collectively is around 13.4% of the population. The Trussell Trust, Britain's biggest food bank network, said they experienced a 47% increase in need during the early stages of the pandemic, and for the first time in its 70-year history, UNICEF announced it would feed hungry children in the UK amid the growing number of kids at risk.