GLENVILLE, GA - Spring was the time for giving back at G&R Farms, as the grower spent May and June of this year raising scholarship funds for Future Farmers of America (FFA) students. G&R partnered with Virginia Produce, Bushman’s, and 12 regional and national retailers for its Growing America’s Farmers (GAF) promotional program. Overall, the partners raised nearly $113,000 in scholarship and grant funds for FFA students in 22 states.
“The average age of today’s American farmer is close to retirement. If we don’t invest in future farmers, who will we turn to, to grow our food in 20 years?” commented Walt Dasher, Vice President of G&R Farms. “We continue to attract, support, and train tomorrow’s agriculture leaders to fill this void, and the FFA is one of the best resources to do this effectively.”
During the past five years, the GAF program has raised nearly $263,000 for FFA member scholarships, surpassing last year’s record-breaking amount by over $20,000. The National FFA Organization announced a record-high student membership number of 850,823, an increase of 15 percent from last year, according to a press release. In addition, chapter numbers increased by 178, resulting in 8,995 chapters in the United States, Puerto Rico, and the U.S. Virgin Islands.
Planning for the 2023 GAF program will begin in October.
“Our team at Harris Teeter is proud to support local growers such as G&R Farms and Virginia Produce Company to help further our mutual mission of advancing produce consumption, agriculture development, and the success of future generations of leaders. Harris Teeter is pleased to assist in providing access to our stores to enable and develop our FFA students into successful young adults, and to partner to provide resources to encourage the future generation of leaders to study agriculture locally,” said Karin Humanik, Director of Produce for Harris Teeter.
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