Hunger IssuesNutrition continues to be a challenge in Canada and throughout the world. Everyday nearly one billion people go to bed hungry. Even more are malnourished. And this figure could potentially rise with the global population expected to reach almost nine billion by 2040.Food Banks Canada – Rural Support ProgramHunger is an issue that affects the health and wellbeing of over 700,000 Canadians who turn to food banks for assistance.
When Syngenta was formed in 2000, we formed the Syngenta Rural FoodShare™ Initiative to help food donations reach rural farming communities.
Syngenta celebrated its 10th anniversary in 2010 by reaching a half million dollar donation level for the Rural FoodShare Initiative, which has been expanded by Food Banks Canada into a broader Rural Support Program to support to help food donations, typically made in urban areas, reach smaller farming communities in need. The Rural FoodShare Initiative recognizes that our rural communities are widely affected by hunger and are often the most starved of resources. In fact, half of Food Banks Canada locations are in rural areas.
Rural food banks make up nearly half (48 per cent) of food banks in the country, serving a higher percentage of children (40 per cent compared to 37.1 per cent overall), seniors (8.5 per cent compared to 5.7 per cent overall) and families (55.2 per cent compared to 50.3 per cent overall) than the national average. Many of these programs serve residents in communities with populations of less than 10,000.
Other programs with Food Banks CanadaThe Syngenta research farm in Ontario donates potatoes grown on the farm to the local Food Bank and land at an Ontario warehousing facility for the local Food Bank to grow vegetable crops.
Canadian Foodgrains BankEach year, Syngenta helps farmers share their harvest with the Canadian Foodgrains Bank by providing products that help grow strong, healthy crops. The Canadian Foodgrains Bank serves as a centralized grain banking and distribution system to alleviate world hunger, and ranks among the largest private food aid providers in the world. It was established in 1983 as a practical way for Canadian farmers to share their abundant harvest with areas in the world that are plagued by food shortages.
In 2011, Ontario farmers
harvested 160 acres of soybeans in 11 minutes 43 seconds to raise funds for the Canadian Foodgrains Bank, setting the record for the fastest soybean harvest. 300 volunteers and 120 combines supported the harvest. Syngenta provided seed, seed treatment, herbicide and fungicide to help raise the healthy and bountiful crop.