MAZON Statements

Today, MAZON echoed calls from Tribal leaders to address urgent food shortages and delivery delays to the Food Distribution Program on Indian Reservations (FDPIR) and the Commodity Supplemental Food Program (CSFP). Both supplemental nutrition programs are administered by the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), providing critical food assistance to hundreds of thousands of Americans each month, and in recent months have been plagued by multiple problems including food shortages and delayed or missed deliveries.

“We are deeply concerned about the critical food shortages and delivery disruptions impacting Indigenous communities,” said Mia Hubbard, Executive Vice President of MAZON: A Jewish Response to Hunger. “While we are grateful that USDA is taking this seriously and Members of Congress are starting to pay attention to the crisis, this never should have happened in the first place. Policymakers and officials at all levels of government must listen to Tribal leaders, who know best how to feed their people. We at MAZON are proud and honored to partner with Tribal organizations and leaders who are doing all they can to reclaim greater control over their food and agricultural systems and advance their own vision for food security. We will continue to stand by their side as we remind policymakers that they have an opportunity and obligation to listen to, respect, and support Tribes and Indigenous communities.”