Thursday, November 5, 2009

MN Farmers Donate Food To Communities

State farmers donate pork and dairy products to Minnesota food shelves
Pine Journal
Published: 11/03/2009

SAINT PAUL, MN, October 30, 2009 – Minnesota Farmers Helping Families, a coalition of state agriculture commodity groups, announced today a donation of more than $115,000 in pork and dairy products to Hunger Solutions Minnesota, a comprehensive hunger relief organization.

At a news conference hosted by Governor Tim Pawlenty at the state capitol, representatives from the Minnesota Soybean Research & Promotion Council, Minnesota Pork Board and Minnesota Milk Producers Association announced the donation of approximately 85,000 lbs of pork and more than 36,000 pounds of cheese.

"Minnesota farmers are known for their willingness to help neighbors in times of need,” Governor Pawlenty said. “It’s heartwarming to see the agricultural community lending a hand, even as it faces its own economic challenges."

In 2008, there were 2 million visits and 47 million pounds of food distributed at Minnesota’s 300 food shelves. There has been an 89 percent increase in food shelf visits since 2000. Minnesota food shelves have also seen a surge in demand this year. There were 328,468 unique visitors to food shelves in the first six months of the year. Read More

One of the favorite terms as of late to describe us evil agriculturalists is greedy. I’m not sure why they think we are greedy. After all, we produce the safest, most abundant, most affordable food supply in the world for this country. Even in the face of these insults, we continue to push forward growing food and living the values of rural America. I always enjoy sharing stories of farmers and ranchers donating food to help their friends and neighbors in the community. If you think about it, it’s one of the most basic and appreciated acts of kindness a human being can do. Congratulations to these Minnesota farming and ranching families for their donation.

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