The AGCO Agriculture Foundation (AAF) announced a $100,000 donation to the World Food Program USA (WFPUSA). The donation will support the United Nations World Food Programme (WFP) emergency relief efforts to provide food assistance for families affected by the conflict inside Ukraine and neighboring countries.

Farmers, farming communities, homes, and economies have all been badly impacted by Ukraine’s ongoing crisis. In addition, people are fleeing their homes, families, farms, land, and businesses. Our thoughts and prayers are with our employees, families, and the people of Ukraine during this time of crisis.

“Watching the destruction of lives and lands due to the crisis in Ukraine is deeply troubling. Sustainably feeding the world is core to our purpose, and we are immediately concerned about the food security of the people caught in the Ukraine crisis. Through our community development and humanitarian focus, we are mobilizing an immediate donation to the U.N. World Food Programme’s emergency operation to provide food assistance to affected families in Ukraine and its borders.”

said Roger N. Batkin, Board Chair, AGCO Agriculture Foundation.

The U.N. World Food Programme recently launched an emergency operation seeking $570M in emergency response to provide food assistance for civilians fleeing the conflict in Ukraine.

AGCO Corporation and the AAF have opened a “ShareTheMeal” team campaign with the U.N. World Food Programme to achieve a 182,000 meal goal in three months as an extension of the total donation. As a result, AGCO employees and concerned stakeholders can donate as individuals or groups to support the ongoing emergency relief and food assistance in Ukraine. Fifty-five cents can provide one meal per day.

“Our first priority was protecting our Ukrainian employees and their families. Our collective concern then quickly shifted to actions we could take to support Ukraine. We are grateful to contribute to the U.N. World Food Programme and to offer our employees the opportunity to contribute to emergency food assistance for Ukraine through our ShareTheMeal team challenge.”

said Ivory Harris, Chief Human Resources Officer at AGCO.

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The AGCO Agriculture Foundation (AAF) announced a new partnership with Self Help Africa (SHA) to implement a sustainable poultry production project that will contribute to enhanced food, skills, income, and nutrition security of smallholder farming communities in Chongwe District of the Republic of Zambia.

The official project launch event took place at the AGCO Future Farm Zambia on Thursday, November 5, 2020, with 50 stakeholders in attendance from across the Zambia poultry and agricultural industry, government officials, journalists, farmer cooperatives, poultry associations, and community leaders, including representatives of the Chongwe District’s Royal Highness Senior Chieftainess Nkomeshya Mukamambo II.

The poultry industry in Zambia is mostly dominated by small-scale farmers who depend on poultry as a social safety net, especially vulnerable households. Given the growing demand for poultry protein and global commitment towards the improvement of animal welfare, it is pivotal to develop tailored projects and initiatives that address key issues and provide sustainable solutions to hunger and nutrition among marginalized farming communities.

“We understand the urgent need to support small-scale farmers in Zambia so that together we can improve production and address existing food and nutrition insecurities. Our foundation is thrilled to partner with Self Help Africa to implement a sustainable approach to enhance the knowledge, skills, and practices of smallholders. Empowering the producers to improve their livestock management operations for economic and nutritional benefits will also highlight animal welfare practices for better treatment of farm animals across the value chain,”

says Metti Richenhagen, Managing Director, AGCO Agriculture Foundation.

The AGCO Agriculture Foundation’s funding is geared towards increasing the productivity, skills, nutrition, and income of 100 poultry farmers in the Chongwe district of Zambia and 50 female poultry farmers from the identified women’s groups.

“Supporting small-scale farmers to end hunger and poverty in rural Africa remains our key focus, and we are excited to work with the AGCO Agriculture Foundation to strengthen this zero hunger commitment. With the prevalence of hunger and nutrition insecurity in the targeted Chongwe district, which has been further exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic, we are optimistic about the timely intervention the project will bring towards sustainable poultry production,”

says Elia Manda, Zambia Country Director, Self Help Africa.

The project will be implemented in conjunction with the AGCO Future Farm in Zambia to provide training support for the project beneficiaries.

“Our agricultural training facility will play a key role to facilitate knowledge and skills transfer for farmers on best livestock management practices required to boost productivity and income. We will work with our Grain & Protein business unit to support selected farmers on improved animal welfare and livestock management operations,”

adds Kalongo Chitengi, Senior Manager, AGCO Future Farm.

Source: AGCO

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AGCO Agriculture Foundation (AAF) has announced a new partnership with the Kenya Red Cross Society (KRCS) to pilot an initiative that will assist in meeting agricultural and nutritional demands at one of Africa’s largest refugee camps.

Against a population of over 200,000 registered refugees, asylum-seekers and the host community, the partnership will address a combination of factors influencing local food production and supply of food aid, such as climate-related impacts, the poor performance of crops and livestock, and the lack of access to modern agricultural systems.

“We understand the urgent need for sustainable alternative sources of food production to combat the local food shortage. Our foundation is thrilled to be a strategic funding partner to foster Dadaab’s agricultural development, which aligns perfectly with our objective of making a smart impact on marginalized farming communities,”

says Metti Richenhagen, Managing Director, AGCO Agriculture Foundation.

The AGCO Agriculture Foundation’s funding is geared towards the future establishment of an 85-acre mechanized farm for pivot-irrigation and crop production. The pivot farm project will produce and preserve pasture for livestock and develop alfalfa for high-quality protein animal feed. The initiative introduces sustainable agricultural operations around the camps, including modern farming techniques, mechanization and irrigation solutions, and soil cover for reduced water loss.

The Dadaab refugee complex consists of three open camps while two camps were permanently closed following the repatriation of refugees and camp consolidation by the UN Refugee Agency (UNHCR). UNHCR together with the Kenya Red Cross Society, as the leading humanitarian agency across the continent, still operates health intervention and environmental rehabilitation in the refugee complex.

“Securing livelihoods of the most vulnerable populations remains a key focus of the Kenya Red Cross Society, and food security has been a major challenge in the Dadaab Refugee camp and its environs. We, therefore, appreciate the AGCO Agriculture Foundation for this timely intervention that seeks to increase pasture production, food production, nutrition and reduce food security crisis for the refugees and host community,”

says Dr. Asha Mohammed, the Kenya Red Cross Society Secretary-General.

The new agriculture initiative will be implemented in conjunction with the UNHCR and also the Kenya County Government of Garissa.

“Our partnership with the KRCS and aim to jointly foster local development for food security in Dadaab also caught the attention of Mechan Groep in the Netherlands. As a leading distributor of agricultural machines and equipment, the organization supports this AAF initiative closely related to their business of farming,”

adds Richenhagen.

Source: AGCO

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Established in 2010 as a result of the tremendous demand among Atlanta-area refugees looking to reconnect to their agricultural heritage, GGN is building a healthy and diverse community food system, manages eight garden sites, helps growers access markets for their products and offers educational opportunities and technical expertise.

The AAF funding assists marginalized growers with an ecosystem of support to grow healthy food for nutritional demands in metro Atlanta communities and to create a platform for the enhancement of capacity building and skill development in farming.

Metti Richenhagen, Managing Director, AGCO Agriculture Foundation said:

“The partnership arrangement between our foundation and Global Growers Network will renovate and relaunch the Clarkston International Garden as a flagship multicultural agriculture learning center in the heart of Atlanta’s refugee community. We will work with GGN to transform the garden from a community garden to a demonstration and educational learning center for sustainable, small-scale agriculture,”

Robin Chanin, Executive Director and Co-Founder of Global Growers Network adds:

“The renovation and relaunch of the Clarkston International Garden will include a new ecological landscaping design to accommodate new garden plots for diverse Clarkston families to grow food for their families and their community. This innovative partnership with the AGCO Agriculture Foundation will not only enrich the lives of the growers who farm here, but also the entire community,”

Interpretive signage will be installed within the center to enable the garden families and visitors to learn about local food production, edible landscaping, rainwater capture, composting and other sustainable farm operations. The center will also contain an educational pavilion for hosting educational workshops, volunteer activities, corporate engagement and community programs.

Source: AgCo

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