Maloney said Cambridge is a leader among municipalities in providing social services.

Some of the problems that the food policy would address were brought to light by studies conducted by Project Bread, a private organization committed to helping the hungry, Cyr said.

According to Project Bread's statewide study on childhood hunger, one out of four children may be hungry, 80,000 children under 12 are going hungry and 115,000 children under 12 are at risk of being hungry.

"When it was released last spring, it sent shockwaves out to the community," Annette R. Casas, Director of Programs at Project Bread said. "It was a truly surprising report."

The study, "Children Are Hungry in Massachusetts," was conducted in conjunction with the Massachusetts Anti-Hunger Coalition and the Massachusetts Department of Public Health.

Casas added that more than 12.8 million emergency meals were served and that the numbers of households supported by food pantries rose more than 55 percent last year.

"If there is any measure of how bad the economy is, it's that there are children going to school hungry and elderly waiting in the cold at food pantries," Cyr said. "We need to recognize hunger as a significant social problem that needs to be addressed."