03 April 2003
Second U.S. Food Aid Shipment Leaves Texas for Iraq
(28,000 ton shipment will feed 4.5 million for 1 month, USAID says) (1030) The United States April 3 sent a ship carrying 28,000 metric tons of bulk winter wheat bound for Iraq. The shipment is enough to feed 4.5 million Iraqis for one month, according to a U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) press release. Another 28,500 metric tons of food were shipped to Iraq April 1, the release said. "This ship carries the unshakable commitment of the United States of America to liberation of Iraq, the freedom of its people and the reconstruction of the country," said Fred Schieck, USAID deputy administrator, in the release. The United States will provide up to 610,000 metric tons of food worth $300 million to the Iraqi people, the release said. An additional $260 million is being provided to the U.N. World Food Program (WFP) for distribution and logistics support. "As we fight to remove the grip of Saddam Hussein's repressive regime, this shipment of wheat demonstrates that America is prepared, as President Bush said, to live up to its responsibility to provide for the Iraqi people," stated Senator Sam Brownback of Kansas, one of the states where the wheat was grown. "Saddam's brutal regime has left his people lacking nourishment as well as freedom," added Senator Kay Bailey Hutchison of Texas, another state that grew the donated wheat. "Our goal is to improve the lives of the Iraqi people, said Congresswoman Jo Ann Emerson of Missouri. The Emerson Humanitarian Trust Fund from which the donated food came is named for the late Bill Emerson, first co-chair of the U.S. Congressional Hunger Center. The ship that left April 3 is the Free Atlas; the one departing April 1 was the Yellow Rose, the release said. Following is the text of the press release: (begin text) FOOD DEPARTS U.S. FOR IRAQ Wheat Shipment is Enough to Feed 4.5 million Iraqis for One Month Galveston, TX -- Fred Schieck, Deputy Administrator of the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID), was joined today by Deputy Undersecretary of Agriculture Jim Butler and other Administration officials at a press conference in the port of Galveston, Texas to send-off a shipment of U.S. emergency food assistance to the people of Iraq. The press conference was held dockside as 28,000 metric tons of bulk hard red winter wheat was being loaded on the M/V Free Atlas, a bulk carrier bound for the Iraqi port of Umm Qasr. Another 28,500 metric tons were loaded previously on the M/V Yellow Rose, which departed Tuesday, April 1st. The wheat shipment is enough to feed 4.5 million Iraqis for one month. It is, however, only a portion of the total food aid the U.S. government is providing to the people of Iraq. The U.S. will provide up to 610,000 metric tons of food worth $300 million to feed the Iraqi people. An additional $260 million is being provided to the U.N. World Food Program for food distribution and logistical support. The wheat contained in this shipment, which was grown in the states of Kansas, Oklahoma and Texas, comes from the Bill Emerson Humanitarian Trust, an emergency reserve administered under the authority of the Secretary of Agriculture. On March 20, the Bush Administration announced the immediate release of 200,000 metric tons of wheat from the Bill Emerson Humanitarian Trust, with another 400,000 tons to be made available as needed. "This ship, the M/V Free Atlas, is carrying 28,000 metric tons of hard red winter wheat from the heartland of America to the people of Iraq. But that is not all. This ship carries the unshakable commitment of the United States of America to liberation of Iraq, the freedom of its people, and the reconstruction of the country," said Mr. Schieck. "When milled, today's shipment of 28,000 tons of hard red winter wheat from the farms of Kansas, Oklahoma, and Texas will provide every man, woman, and child in Iraq with almost 1 pound of flour," said Jim Butler, U.S. Deputy Undersecretary for Farm and Agricultural Services. "This shipment is only the beginning. Working hand-in-hand with other government agencies, the World Food Program and private voluntary organizations, we will work to make sure food reaches the people who need it most." The U.S. government is fully prepared to provide humanitarian and reconstruction assistance to the people of Iraq -- to save lives, alleviate suffering, and mitigate the impact of emergency situations. For the last several months, USAID, working in close coordination with the Department of State and other U.S. agencies, has planned for a possible humanitarian emergency by pre-positioning stockpiles of emergency supplies and commodities; communicating and coordinating with U.S. and international humanitarian organizations; and making contingency plans for reconstruction activities. Several members of Congress also made statements about the significance of today's shipment. U.S. Senator Sam Brownback of Kansas stated: "As we fight to remove the grip of Saddam Hussein's repressive regime, this shipment of wheat demonstrates that America is prepared, as President Bush said, to live up to its responsibility to provide for the Iraqi people." "Saddam's brutal regime has left his people lacking nourishment as well as freedom. I'm proud Texas is providing this contribution of wheat so Iraqis receive the humanitarian assistance promised them," U.S. Senator Kay Bailey Hutchison of Texas said. "As President Bush has said time and again since Operation Iraqi Freedom began, our goal is to improve the lives of the Iraqi people," said Congresswoman Jo Ann Emerson of Missouri. "That involves not only dismantling the regime of Saddam Hussein but bringing food and medicine to places so the Iraqi people can live a normal life and have hope. The food aid made available through the Bill Emerson Humanitarian Trust makes that goal possible and will make a real difference in the lives of those Iraqi people who have been suppressed and starving for far too long." (end text) (Distributed by the Office of International Information Programs, U.S. Department of State. Web site: http://usinfo.state.gov)
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