On June 17, Second Harvest of South Georgia and AgGeorgia Farm Credit announced Homegrown Help, a new joint initiative to combat the effects of COVID-19 in the area. The Farm Credit cooperative is a long-time supporter of the food bank’s work, but Homegrown Help marks the first partnership between the two organizations.

Disasters and emergency situations like the COVID-19 outbreak compound our existing food insecurity crisis.  The pandemic and related closures have drastically increased the need for food assistance in South Georgia.  Since March, Second Harvest has distributed double the amount of food it had in 2019 – an additional 2 million meals worth.  The need is only anticipated to grow as unemployment benefits run out later this summer.

South Georgia’s agriculture community has likewise been hit incredibly hard.  With schools and restaurants closed, our area growers have few market outlets.  They have seen too much supply and not enough demand.  Few processing options exist in the region to extend the shelf life of these valuable crops.

This is where Homegrown Help comes in – to benefit not just the families needing food but also our area farmers. Funds raised will go to purchase Georgia Grown produce; in turn, the food bank will provide these nutritious fruits and vegetables to families in need.   AgGeorgia Farm Credit, as co-founder of this campaign, has committed $25,000 to this initiative as part of a larger $50,000 total donation to regional food banks in their service area.   Second Harvest anticipates many local individuals and businesses will want to contribute to this fundraising campaign and has several large donors who have already expressed interested.  Individuals can donate by texting “HOMEGROWN” to 619-870-1680, or by going to www.feedingsga.org.

“We really appreciate AgGeorgia and Second Harvest partnering together on this,” said Justin Corbett of Corbett Brothers Farms, long-time produce growers in Lake Park, Georgia.  “For many years we have supported Second Harvest and understand the great benefit that they provide in our community. We are also proud to be a member of an organization like AgGeorgia Farm Credit that is willing to step in to help in times like these.”

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Source: AgGeorgia Farm Credit, which is solely responsible for the information provided and is wholly owned by the source. Informa Business Media and all its subsidiaries are not responsible for any of the content contained in this information asset.