To address these major issues, Business for Impact at Georgetown University’s McDonough School of Business is launching a new industry leadership initiative that will bring together food executives, non-profit leaders, government regulators, and the public health community to put teeth into advancing actionable, real world solutions.

Hand-in-hand with hunger goes a lower intake of calories, vitamins and other nutrients, which puts this demographic at risk for a wide variety of ailments.

Data released by the USDA last year estimated that 50 million Americans are food insecure, including 17 million children.

Children who lack access to healthy foods, particularly fruit and vegetables, are twice as likely to develop behavioral problems, a Queensland study found.