Mobile Tribune, an online publication based in Mobile,Alabama and reporting news worldwide via blogs, is in talks with representatives from the United States Postal Service to negotiate a new postal rate called the Food Donation Parcel Rate that will allow Americans to ship small parcels of non-perishable food to countries as far away as Africa. Mobile Tribune publisher and editor Preston Brady III registered the Internet domain name Hambre.org in 2003 with intent to utilize it in a program that would provide a new way for people to help feed the hungry. If the program moves forward, Hambre.org, which means "hunger" in Spanish, would compile a directory of charitable organizations and churches worldwide who would receive the donated food packages on behalf of those in their communities. Hambre.org would vet the organizations in a procedure that would follow-up with some of the recipients of the donations. The directory would be published on Hambre.org and visitors could select any organization they wish and then follow instructions for preparing the food parcels and mailing them. 

"We have agreed with the postal service at this point that the special food donation rate would not guarantee an arrival time of the donation and that parcels may be held in cases of remote destinations until a certain number are received and ready for shipment," said Brady. He stressed that the program is not designed to take anything away from the many organizations who currently receive cash donations and channel food in that manner. "It's just a way for those who normally would not donate money, or do not do so with frequency, to make a real, actual food donation themselves." The process is still in early stages and as soon as readied will be announced on the web site and through other media.

I am impressed at how quickly the U.S. Postmaster General's office initiated a response to my email about a possible special food donation parcel rate. I received a call today, just a few days after my correspondence from an office in Alabama where I am located. I explained my idea and was informed my inquiry would be directed to a department that more directly handles such inquiries and that I will receive another call on Monday.

Imagine if you could put together a small non-perishable food package and send it by U.S. mail, UPS or FedEx directly to a family who needs it? This is the idea I have had for several years, and understand the difficulties of implementing such a program. Also, I am not advising this method as a replacement for donations to the many good organizations who help feed the hungry in the world, but as a supplement to their efforts. Despite the hard work of organizations and companies and donations from many caring people, world hunger is still at an unacceptable level. I hope you will come back here in the near future for updates on my progress in starting Hambre.org food donation program.

I have owned Hambre.org for many years and have thought about how the domain might be used to address feeding the hungry - in a new way though. I hope to share this idea soon and implement a beta form of the idea.