Pope Francis says man's greed will destroy world, urges world leaders to help the hungry
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Pope Francis has warned that planet Earth will not forgive the abuse of its resources for profit, urging the world's leaders to rein in their greed and help the hungry.
He said if action was not taken the world risked a doomsday scenario in which nature would exact revenge.
"God always forgives, but the earth does not," the Argentine Pope told representatives from 190 countries gathered for the Second International Conference on Nutrition in Rome.
"Take care of the earth so it does not respond with destruction."
Pope Francis has warned that planet Earth will not forgive the abuse of its resources for profit, urging the world's leaders to rein in their greed and help the hungry.
He said if action was not taken the world risked a doomsday scenario in which nature would exact revenge.
"God always forgives, but the earth does not," the Argentine Pope told representatives from 190 countries gathered for the Second International Conference on Nutrition in Rome.
"Take care of the earth so it does not respond with destruction."
Pope Francis, a staunch defender of the poor, said the world "paid too little heed to those who are hungry".
While the number of undernourished people dropped by over half in the past 20 years, some 805 million people were still affected in 2014.
"It is also painful to see the struggle against hunger and malnutrition hindered by market priorities, the primacy of profit, which reduce foodstuffs to a commodity like any other, subject to speculation and financial speculation in particular," Pope Francis said.
"The hungry remain at the street corner... and ask for a healthy diet.
"We ask for dignity, not for charity."
The Pope has in the past launched several scathing attacks on those who get rich through market speculation, particularly the practice of betting on the price of food commodities which can inflate prices and see poor families go hungry.
He urged the world's population to have "mutual respect, instead of fighting between themselves, damaging and impoverishing the planet".
Pope Francis praised the work of the UN food agency and the World Health Organisation for getting delegates at the conference to adopt a "Rome Declaration on Nutrition" and "Framework for Action".
But he called on those drawing up "rules and technical measures" not to lose sight of the hungry man "fighting for survival".
"Feed the hungry, save life on the planet," Pope Francis said at the end of his speech which was met with a standing ovation.
The declaration focused on improving access to healthy food but also the growing problem of inactive over-eaters.
Two billion people suffer from deficiencies in nutrients such as vitamin A, iron and zinc - a condition known as "hidden hunger" by experts - while 42 million children and 500 million adults are overweight or obese.
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