Land O'Lakes Announces a Multi-level Approach to Help Alleviate Hunger

Arden Hills, Minn. (Vocus/PRWEB ) -- The Land O'Lakes Foundation recently announced the launch of a strategic initiative – Feeding Our Communities – focused on helping alleviate hunger locally, nationally (in rural America) and globally.

“Recent global economic uncertainty has resulted in an increased demand on hunger-focused programs here at home and around the globe,” Land O'Lakes Foundation Executive Director Lydia Botham said today. “As a farmer-owned food and agricultural cooperative, Land O'Lakes and the Land O'Lakes Foundation are committed to helping address this issue. Feeding Our Communities is intended to apply our resources and expertise in a very focused and strategic way – locally, nationally and globally.”

Local
Twin Cities-based Land O'Lakes, Inc. and the Land O'Lakes Foundation are taking a proactive role in supporting local hunger relief programs. Those efforts include partnering with KARE 11 Television and the United Way.

“We are working through KARE 11's 'Take KARE of Your Community' program,” Botham explained. “Visit the station's Web site (www.KARE11.com), click on the 'Take KARE' and 'of your community' links. Then you'll see the 'Operation Co-operation' link, with its green 'YOU CLICK. WE DONATE.' hot button. For every click, the Land O'Lakes Foundation will donate one dollar, up to $100,000, to local hunger relief programs. We urge area residents to take a few moments to visit the site. The more clicks, the more we donate.”

“Our goal is to generate new funding for local hunger relief efforts,” Botham said. “We believe enhancing our traditional support of community hunger initiatives through Operation Co-operation will not only generate additional funding, but also bring increased visibility and community recognition of the hunger issue.”

Botham added that Land O'Lakes is partnering with General Mills and Cargill to sponsor the Twin Cities Hunger Forum on Nov. 10.

National
On a national level, as part of the Feeding Our Communities initiative, the Land O'Lakes Foundation Board of Directors has approved funding for a program with the potential to generate up to an additional $1 million for hunger-related programs in rural communities – delivered through a combination of direct grants and the Foundation's Member Co-op Match Program.

“There is a tendency to underestimate the impact of hunger in rural communities,” Botham said. “But the fact is, the percentage of rural households that are food insecure matches, or even exceeds, the percentage of urban households. As a farmer-owned cooperative, Land O'Lakes is committed to addressing the quality of life in rural communities.”

“The Feeding Our Communities grant program represents a direct response to the increased need we are seeing in today's challenging economy,” Land O'Lakes Foundation Board Chairman Jim Hager said. “It channels financial resources into the communities where our members live, work, farm and do business. It represents a very focused approach to a very significant, and growing, need. Just as important, it involves member- cooperatives in identifying and addressing needs within their local communities.”

In another national initiative, Land O'Lakes is launching a new “First-Run” program, with a commitment to delivering an additional truckload (approximately 20 tons) of fresh product a month to hunger relief programs over the coming year.

“This program basically makes use of time when our production facilities might otherwise be idle to manufacture product for donation,” Botham said. “A key element in this effort is the involvement of our employees, as well as suppliers, packagers or transportation providers we work with.”

Global
On a global level, Feeding Our Communities includes an ongoing commitment to leadership in the delivery of food aid and economic and agricultural development assistance to nutrition deficit regions and emerging economies,” Botham said. “We do this through our International Development Division, working in collaboration with a host of public and private partners.”

Botham indicated that, in 2009, the Land O'Lakes International Development Division will reach more than 200,000 youngsters through the Global School Nutrition Program and is implementing economic development assistance projects in 28 nations.