FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Contact: Brittany Jablonsky, 701-690-0000
[email protected]

SANTA FE, N.M. (March 8, 2014) – For the third year, National Farmers Union (NFU) partnered with Feeding America to raise funds and donate produce to food banks in rural communities. Farmers Union members donated $196,700 to Feeding America and its local food banks – the most money raised annually since the campaign’s inception.

“Feeding the less fortunate is not a mission family farmers and ranchers take lightly. Farmers Union members have always sought innovative solutions to food security challenges, whether in their own communities or on the other side of the world,” said NFU President Roger Johnson.

“Rural hunger doesn’t always get the same media attention as inner-city poverty, but anyone who has lived in a rural community knows that food insecurity doesn’t discriminate based on geography, and is often exacerbated by the distance and isolation of rural areas,” said Johnson. “And, globally, some of the most food-insecure families are comprised of smallholder farmers who are themselves food producers.”

Many donations were in the form of fresh fruits and vegetables, given to local food banks to provide needy families with fresh, locally grown food. In addition, many youth participating in Farmers Union education programs donated funds to the campaign, fostering a new generation of leaders dedicated to improving their communities.

NFU announced the campaign’s results at the opening of its annual convention, which runs through Tuesday. For more information about the NFU convention, visit www.nfu.org/convention, or follow @nfudc and #NFU2014 on Twitter.

National Farmers Union has been working since 1902 to protect and enhance the economic well-being and quality of life for family farmers, ranchers and rural communities through advocating grassroots-driven policy positions adopted by its membership.

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