The Family Meal at EXPO Milano

The 'Family Meal – What brings us together?' pan-European photo exhibition, run jointly by the European Commission and the UN World Food Programme (WFP), was launched next to the EU Pavilion at Expo Milano on 19 July and will remain on display until World Humanitarian Day on 19 August.

The exhibition aims to raise public awareness about hunger – the world’s most solvable problem. The compelling images and stories demonstrate how people’s lives can be changed through food assistance that is provided in various innovative ways including vouchers and cash, offering both choice and opportunity to entire communities. It consists of a series of powerful photos taken by renowned photographer Chris Terry, as he travelled across three continents to explore EU-financed projects run by WFP. He visited families receiving food assistance in Ecuador, Chad, Niger, Jordan and Myanmar/Burma.

These families’ circumstances are considerably more difficult than those faced by the average European – they represent tens of millions of refugees forced from their homes because of conflict and millions more living in extreme poverty and on the frontline of climate change around the world. While they have temporarily lost the ability to provide enough food to remain healthy and enable their children to grow to their full potential, WFP can step in to help - thanks to EU humanitarian assistance.

Five countries, three continents, one universal custom: sharing a meal with family members. Chris Terry’s pictures reveal that our desire to share is one of the most essential ingredients, not only for the family meal, but also for a zero hunger world. It is a joint meal at lunch or dinner time that brings families together, everywhere in the world.

The EXPO Milano 2015 is a global showcase of innovative and shared solutions to guarantee healthy, safe and sufficient food for everyone in ethical and sustainable ways. The area of food assistance and nutrition represents about half of ECHO’s humanitarian assistance, amounting to a total investment of €535 million in 2013. Bringing families back to the dinner table is a priority for the EU, WFP, and us all.

Photo credits: Chris Terry Photographer