Sainsbury’s Director of Corporate Responsibility, Sustainability & Public Affairs, Judith Batchelar, is set to announce that the food industry’s Food for Good network has raised an incredible £2 million for the international charity Farm Africa since its launch in 2011.
The announcement will be made at an online event celebrating the tenth anniversary of the Food for Good network on Thursday 18 March.
Food for Good unites global food and farming businesses behind the power of food to change lives. Network members support Farm Africa’s work embedding sustainable agriculture in eastern Africa. Funds are raised through membership fees, as well as food industry leaders participating in a series of ambitious fundraising challenges.
Judith Batchelar commented: “We are absolutely thrilled that the Food for Good network has reached the milestone of raising a staggering £2 million for Farm Africa. Having led several of the fundraising challenges in eastern Africa myself, where I got to know many of the farmers benefiting from the charity’s support, I’m left in no doubt that every penny raised is being put to incredible use, helping Farm Africa give farming families the support they need to grow more and better produce, and sell it for higher prices, all while protecting the environment for generations to come.”
Dan Collison, CEO of Farm Africa, added: “As a charity that supports food producers in eastern Africa, we’re hugely grateful to have the generous support of the UK food industry. Every day, farming communities face the immense challenge of providing for their families in the face of lack of access to training, agricultural supplies and markets, all of which are compounded by climate change and now the Covid-19 pandemic. The support of the Food for Good network has never been more needed. We’re very thankful to everyone who has contributed to reaching the £2 million mark, from climbing Kilmanjaro, the Bale Mountains or Mount Elgon, to building beehives in Tanzania, digging fishponds in Kenya and attending the Food for Good Gala Dinners. Your support is supporting the development of a sustainable food system in eastern Africa.”
The first Food for Good fundraising challenge took place in 2011, when a group of food industry leaders climbed Africa’s tallest mountain, Kilimanjaro in Tanzania, raising £250,000 for Farm Africa. Other fundraising challenges have included the Bale Mountains Trek, the Mount Elgon Trek, the Tanzania Highland Challenge, two Big Beehive Builds in Tanzania, a Dig for Good fishpond dig in Kenya and the Thousand Trees tree planting challenge in western Uganda.
In 2021, the Food for Good network is aiming to raise a total of £280,000. Companies in the food and farming sector can join the network for a fee of £10,000 plus VAT, which will count towards the total. Plans are also being developed for a Covid-safe fundraising challenge for food industry participants, to be announced soon.
The next Food for Good Gala Dinner is scheduled to take place in October 2022, having been postponed from 2020 due to the coronavirus pandemic.
