Southwest Saskatchewan growing projects help Canadian Foodgrains Bank to combat hunger
Harvest income from Canadian Foodgrains Bank growing projects in southwest Saskatchewan will make a difference to people facing hunger in countries around the world.
Rick Block, the Saskatchewan regional representative for the Canadian Foodgrains Bank, has been attending harvest days at growing projects around the province since 2016. He has witnessed a sense of real celebration at these events, but sometimes also disappointment when a lack of rain results in a less desirable outcome.
However, whatever the outcome during each year's harvest, there is always one common feeling.
“People have committed to say we're working together and we are committed to doing this, because every little bit counts to help those that are in way less fortunate situations than we are,” he noted.
Similar sentiments were expressed by growing project participants in southwest Saskatchewan who spoke to the Prairie Post about the outcome of this year's harvest.
“It's the community working together to raise money to support hungry people,” landowner Bruce Pate said. “These community growing projects get the community working together to do more. I'm grateful for where I live and for what I have and would like to just help other people that don't have as much as we do and go to bed hungry. If we do a little bit to help a few people not go to bed hungry, that's a good thing.”
He has been providing 134 acres of land since 2008 for the Stewart Valley community project. A crop of durum wheat was harvested on Aug. 24 with a yield of over 30 bushels per acre.
“It's a little bit below average, but we're grateful for it,” he said.
The crop was struggling towards the end with very hot and dry
conditions. There was a lack of rainfall during the second half of the growing season.
“It was a pretty good growing season for May and June,” he recalled. “Then in July things started to get warm and dry, and then August was really dry.”
The durum crop was sold at a price of $12.50 a bushel and he expected the project will be able to make a donation of around $50,000 to the Canadian Foodgrains Bank. All the inputs were donated, including spraying for grasshoppers, and he appreciated the ongoing support for the Stewart Valley community project.
“It would be great if other people decide to start growing projects in their communities too,” he said.
The Stewart Valley site is part of the Grasslands growing project. The other site, called Lone Tree, is located just north of Swift Current.
Andrew Gerbrandt, the coordinator of the Grasslands growing project, said a significant change happened this year for the Lone Tree project.
“The landowners that donate the land decided to switch it from the field that was off the highway to one that was along Highway 4,” he mentioned. “The new field is also a few acres bigger than the previous field as well. So that's the benefit of it.”
As a result of this change, the size of the Lone Tree project site increased from 150 acres to just over 160 acres. Its location next to Highway 4 might help to attract some additional attention to this initiative and there is a large sign next to the road to indicate the crop will benefit the Canadian Foodgrains Bank.
Feed barley was planted for the 2022 season at the Lone Tree site and the yield was around 45 bushels per acre.
“We didn't get a whole lot of rain,” he said. “So I think it was pretty good, considering the dry conditions.”
The crop was harvested on Sept. 12 and 13 by Pattison Agriculture and Drumcrew Enterprises. Gerbrandt expressed appreciation towards them and various input suppliers contributing to the continuing success of the project.
Dan and Carol Siebert from Main Centre offered 125 acres for a third growing season to support Grow Hope Saskatchewan, which donates proceeds to the Canadian Foodgrains Bank.
“It's a way that I can say thank you to God for just blessing this farm,” Dan said. “We don't need the income from that field and so we're really happy that we can contribute to end world hunger and that other people can join us. It's good for the community, it's good for our neighbours across the world that are in need of food, and it's delightful to be involved in something like this.”
Grow Hope Saskatchewan has several sites across the province and the Main Centre location is the only one in southwest Saskatchewan. It provides a creative way to engage more people in the effort to address global hunger. Farmers donate their land and agree to grow a crop, while individuals can become involved through the sponsorship of acres.
The farming of the land provided by the Sieberts for the Grow Hope initiative was done by neighbouring farmers Chaun and Sara Holfeld.
The harvesting of green lentils at the Main Centre site already took place on Aug. 12. The Holfelds provided one combine and nearby landowner Gary Martens brought his combine to get the crop off the land.
“We're so glad that people join in with us and help us out and get behind the project,” Dan said. “We're really happy for that. And I can't say enough about what Chaun and Sara do. They do all the work and a lot of arranging and putting on the chemical and seeding it and spraying it and harvesting it.”
The yield was about 20 bushels per acre and it was sold at $24 a bushel. Varying weather conditions had an influence on the crop.
“We started out with a few little showers that really helped it get going, but I guess we needed a little more in July and August,” he noted. “So we were quite dry here. … The crops were pushed pretty hard with the heat in late July and early August, and so then it's natural for a crop to ripen early and to put all its efforts into getting the seeds ready that it does have, and maybe some of the smaller ones just fall off.”
Several other growing projects also took place in southwest Saskatchewan, and Rick Block provided some details on them.
The Tower Hills growing project is located on a quarter section west of the village of Golden Prairie. It experienced another dry year and the barley crop yielded around 27 bushels per acre.
The Southwest Growing Project at Leader produced a red lentil crop with a yield of 14 bushels an acre on a full quarter section. The Christ the Redeemer farming project at Swift Current had a canola crop with a yield around 15 bushels per acre.
The Canadian Foodgrains Bank will also be a beneficiary of another project in the area. Project Mission Hope by Monette Farms will donate funds from 320 acres of cropland to six non-profit organizations, including the Foodgrains Bank. This project consists of 160 acres in the Swift Current area and 160 acres at Regina.
He noted that individual farmers in the area will also support the Canadian Foodgrains Bank with a grain donation from their harvest.
“That is actually one of the most exciting parts of what we do as the Foodgrains Bank,” he said. “It's quite a unique way in which a significant amount of dollars is generated for our international work on the basis of all of these various people who are local that are involved in some way, shape or form in agriculture. They're all contributing something and it's like puzzle pieces coming together, and it really can form quite a wonderful whole.”
According to Block the need for food aid in various locations around the world are still significant due to conflict, political instability, and severe weather causing crop failures.
“It's been communicated fairly clearly within the Foodgrains Bank and other organizations, including the United Nations World Food Program, that the need has certainly increased and much of that has been connected to conflict,” he said.
The conflict in Ukraine means that food assistance is required and the situation in Afghanistan has continued to deteriorate.
Canadian humanitarian organizations have been unable to work in Afghanistan after the Taliban came into power, because it is considered a terrorist organization by the Canadian government. The Foodgrains Bank is part of the Aid for Afghanistan campaign asking the federal government to make an exception for aid organization to work there.
Recent floods in Pakistan displaced millions of people and caused the loss of millions of acres of crops. He added that there have also been success stories and relief efforts in other countries have helped to decrease hunger.
Block expressed appreciation towards people in Saskatchewan for their ongoing generosity towards the Canadian Foodgrains Bank.
“I connect to so many generous people across the province,” he said. “That's' inspiring and I just want people to know we have a lot of gratitude for that.”