Agriculture & Food
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Photo: Erin Gray/Mercy Corps
Most of the world doesn't have the benefit of picking up food from the corner store — they grow it themselves. A family's plot of land has to provide for their nutritional and economic needs.
When food shortages occur due to drought and conflict, Mercy Corps helps prevent hunger and treat malnutrition in the most vulnerable — children, pregnant women, the elderly and the displaced.
Distributing food is necessary in times of crisis, and we always try to procure food from local suppliers to save money, ensure faster delivery and support of the local economy. Learn more about the success of this model in Niger (PDF) ▸
In addition to emergency responses, we quickly focus on long-term solutions that strengthen harvests and livestock for the long-term. Mercy Corps works with families to ensure quality inputs, smart land use, good crop yields and a fair price at local markets.
All stories about Agriculture & Food
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Niger: Women farming more food November 16, 2012
In the Djolley Fandou village in the drought-stricken Tillaberi region of Niger, women are in charge of the farming; most of the men left early on during the hunger crisis to find work in the city.
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Niger: One more meal November 9, 2012
At the second of three cash distributions in Niger, Mercy Corps staff heard that families have been able to eat one additional meal every day thanks to the support.
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Ethiopia: Coping with drought by building peace October 18, 2012
We sent out a team to research why one drought-stricken community was coping so well. The findings were striking: When local conflict had been addressed, people were far better equipped to survive the drought.
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Mali: Families stock up on food October 11, 2012
Mercy Corps teams are distributing emergency monthly vouchers to families in northern Mali that allow them to buy food on the local market. The money gets them a month's supply of the necessary basics they choose; most are stocking up on oil and rice.
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Mali: Emergency food aid is just the start October 11, 2012
Mercy Corps teams are now providing desperately needed assistance in Mali to those who are struggling to find enough to eat.
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Ethiopia: Feeding hungry babies October 11, 2012
In Ida Adays village, our mobile health team weighed seven-month-old Nasteho Mohamed and found her to be malnourished. She weighed only 4kg, but at her age should be somewhere around 4.8kg.
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Myanmar: Bringing abundance back to the land of temples October 4, 2012
Many families in Myanmar’s Northern Rakhine state don’t have enough to eat during the year. Unpredictable weather patterns have plagued small farmers and disrupted their productivity.
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Zimbabwe: Innovative farming initiative recognized at Clinton gathering September 27, 2012
Mercy Corps and the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation were recognized at the Clinton Global Initiative Annual Meeting in New York City on Tuesday for their Commitment to Action to implement Agri-Fin Mobile.
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Haiti: Bringing trees back to the mountains August 16, 2012
Farmer Selina Marie (right) carries tree saplings to plant throughout her farm, high in the mountainous community of Sibase.
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Mali, Niger: What you want to know about the Sahel hunger crisis August 16, 2012
The hunger crisis in the Sahel is not an immediate emergency that gets splashed across the evening news. Instead, the tragic circumstances of drought and failed harvests have been building since the beginning of the year.