WASHINGTON, June 19 (Reuters) - The U.S. House of Representatives is expected to vote on Thursday on whether to provide as much as an additional $1.245 billion in emergency global food aid funding for this year and next.

The bill would give $1.245 billion for emergency food aid programs, $500 million more than President George W. Bush has requested for fiscal years 2008 and 2009.

It also would provide $245 million above what Bush sought in new funding for agriculture development and disaster funding abroad, for a total of $620 million in fiscal 2009 going to the Agency for International Development for those activities.

The funding goes to a vote as part of a $183.9 billion supplemental spending bill going mostly to fund the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan.

The House began debate of the legislation late on Thursday. The Senate should take up the bill in coming days if the House approves it.

Most of the extra food assistance, if approved, will likely go to Africa in an era when soaring food prices threaten to plunge millions of people into hunger and malnutrition.

The United States is the world's largest provider of food aid.

AlertNet news is provided by