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BASF and FCC partner to donate 100,000 meals
September 22, 2020 By Top Crop Manager
BASF Agricultural Solutions has partnered with Farm Credit Canada’s (FCC) Drive Away Hunger campaign to bring meals to those in their communities who need it most. BASF marks its first year of national partnership with FCC with a donation of 100,000 meals to the communities where BASF employees live and work.
“Now more than ever, our communities need our help,” said Jonathan Sweat, vice-president, business management, agricultural solutions for BASF Canada. “We believe that access to food is a basic human right, not a privilege. As an integral part of the food value chain in Canada, we also believe that it is our responsibility to help. While a lot has changed in 2020, hunger hasn’t.”
There are over a million visits to Canadian food banks every month, and that was before COVID-19 increased demand. BASF’s donation will go directly to the communities in which it operates, including Calgary and Lethbridge, Alta., Regina and Saskatoon, Sask., Winnipeg, and London, Ont. Earlier this year, BASF and its employees donated more than $64,000 to Food Banks Canada during its virtual food drive, launched in response to the pandemic.
Drive Away Hunger started in 2004 when an FCC employee travelled across Canada in an open-cab tractor trailer for eight days, collecting almost 60,000 pounds of food. The campaign has grown to become the largest food drive in Canada, with 100 per cent of donations directly benefiting local charities.
“FCC Drive Away Hunger is a great opportunity for Canada’s agriculture and food industry to pull together in support of people in our communities who may be less fortunate or going through difficult times,” said Michael Hoffort, FCC president and CEO. “We are proud to have so many community-minded industry partners, such as BASF Agricultural Solutions, who contribute to the success of this program through their generous donations to Canadian food banks.”
“We’re proud to be partnering with other like-minded Canadians in the FCC Drive Away Hunger campaign. Together, millions of meals will be provided to families and individuals in need and we look forward to this first year of partnership growing into a long-term promise,” Sweat added.
