AUGUSTA, Maine - The Task Force to End Student Hunger today rolled out its five-year plan to end childhood hunger in Maine.
The plan calls for creating public-private partnerships to capture nearly $50 million in unused federal funding already earmarked for Maine nutrition programs.
Maine Senate Democratic Leader Justin Alfond, of Portland, says the number of children in Maine who are hungry, or food insecure, is unacceptable.
And he says that's despite the fact that 46 percent of school-aged children qualify for free and reduced meals, a statistic that ranks Maine first in New England and third in the United States for food insecurity.
"Today, we are letting Maine children down," Alfond said. "Today in all 16 counties and every school district there are too many hungry children. Over 86,000 children are food insecure here in the state of Maine. They are hungry."
Alfond says the task force is recommending legislation that would increase partnerships with food distributors and farmers to help close the nutrition gap.