Emergency food banks, school lunch programs and other food assistance programs need the meat, struggling farmers need the business and the government needs to stabilize the economy.

It's difficult to mount an argument against the cleverly conceived Meat the Need program, which was hatched by the National Association of State Departments of Agriculture and designed to accomplish all of the above.

If Congress gives its blessing, $900 million in federal economic stimulus funds would be used to purchase surplus dairy, turkey and pork products for food assistance programs. It would be money well-spent, funneling food to the hungry and stimulating hard-to-reach rural economies while helping to stabilize agricultural prices and save struggling farms.

At a press conference announcing the initiative last week, a Weber County dairy producer painted a grim picture of his industry, where high production costs and low milk prices add up to operational losses. Farmers are surviving on borrowed money, surrendering hard-earned equity in land and buildings amassed over generations.

Plus, turkey farmers are struggling with high feed prices due in part to the use of corn in ethanol production, while pork producers have been plowed under by the erroneous belief that eating pork can cause swine flu, which has reduced demand.

The plight of the poor and food-insecure is also well documented. Food donations -- thank you, Utah -- are up 20 percent over

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last year, according to Utah Food Bank Services. But, fed by the poor economy, demand at the more than 125 food pantries and other emergency food outlets and programs served by the nonprofit is up 40 percent. And bulk donations of high protein foods like turkey, pork and cheese are rare.

There's a downside to the proposal -- higher prices for consumers after the surplus is removed from the marketplace. For example, wholesale milk prices could jump 40 cents per gallon, said Leonard Blackham, Utah's commissioner of agriculture.

But, the alternative is worse. Without a program to reduce agricultural surpluses and stabilize prices, Blackham said, many producers will fall into bankruptcy, driving up food costs and creating a ripple effect across rural economies that revolve around farming. Dairy, pork and turkey production is a $500 million-per-year industry in the Beehive State.

It's time for the federal government to help feed the hungry, and help keep farmers from joining their ranks.