Japan also need food aidAid groups say thousands of Japanese families are living under the poverty line.For many that means they cannot afford to put food on their tables.One organization is trying to fix Japan's hunger problem.Volunteers at the Second Harvest Food pantry in Tokyo fill cardboard boxes with bread, vegetables and canned goods.The boxes soon will be sent to families living around the city.“Our three main groups of people are refugees, single mothers and Japanese who are unemployed,said Ruby Sakuma, the panty's coordinator.“Right now we have about 140 households we are serving.They get one package of food every two weeks, a total of six packages and when those six packages are sent,we send them a letter saying this is the end, if they are in really dire circumstances, then we sometimes renew their order and send them another six packages.”Sakuma says during this year’s global economic slowdown it has been harder to keep up with demand and fill their clients’ orders.Second Harvest is Japan’s first and only food bank.Workers go to supermarkets, restaurants and other businesses to collect food that often, because of damaged packaging or other problems, would have been thrown away.This waste is what compelled American Charles McJilton to help create the organization in 2002.
