Many agriculture companies support their local communities, and ACH Seeds is one of them. This summer, the company invested $60,000 into rural communities through its Homegrown Giving program.

“There’s only seven or eight markets to grow sugarbeets in the United States,” says Andy Finkral, ACH Seeds sales leader. “Wherever we sell our seed, we give back a $10,000 donation in those communities where we live, work and sell seed.”

The 2024 donations were given to organizations in North Dakota, Michigan, Minnesota, Idaho, Montana and Nebraska. “Our customers are farmers, so they live and work in these communities,” Finkral says. “We’re very excited to be able to have this program give back to these rural communities.”

As part of the program’s panel, local residents review each organization’s application to determine the impact the group has on its community. “We look at community need, how it will help the rural area, and these winners just really fit what we’re trying to do with these funds,” he says.

Putting funds to work

Following are some of the organizations receiving donations from ACH Seeds:

Richland-Wilkin Emergency Food Pantry, Wahpeton, N.D. With a food pantry, backpack program and mobile food pantry, the Richland-Wilkin Food Pantry serves various community needs. Sharron Bladow, food pantry coordinator, says the work couldn’t be done without its 137 volunteers.

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“Our backpack program has around 375 students each week, while the food pantry provides to 55 to 65 families per week,” Bladow says. “There are about 60 families on our mobile route each month, which is a lot of elderly people who can’t get out of their homes as often.”

FEEDING A COMMUNITY: Coordinator Shannon Bladow (left) and volunteer Laurie Drewlow (middle) of the Richland Wilkin Emergency Food Pantry accept a donation from Jake Boersma, ACH seeds central region manager.

The food pantry is feeling the strain of higher food prices, and the donation will help keep healthy food items on the shelves of the pantry before going into the community. Bladow says the funds will help not only local families, but also community businesses.

“We’re so excited to be able to purchase a lot of the food we need right here in our community,” she says. “We take advantage of sales, and they’re always looking out for us and letting us know about any deals we may benefit from.”

The food pantry’s commitment to supporting the local community ensures that the funds awarded them stay local while helping support families in their service area.

Renville County West FFA, Renville, Minn. The FFA chapter will use the funds to benefit its members and facilities, including updating welding equipment, offering class field trips and improving community gardens.

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“Our chapter is around 50 kids, and they’re very active,” says Jason Stewig, FFA advisor. “We get them to as many contests as we can, and do a lot of community events. One of those are our two community gardens,” he says. “The chapter provides almost all of the plants, tomatoes, peppers, cucumber, zucchini, sweet corn [and] pumpkins. And we take care of it during summer and the school year, and then the community can come help themselves to whatever they want come harvest.”

FFA SUPPORT: Renville County West FFA plans to use the funds they received through the ACH Seeds program to update welding equipment for students and to support its community garden. FFA advisors Meghan Beckendorf (middle) and Jason Stewig (right) accept the Homegrown Giving donation from Jake Boersma, ACH Seeds central region manager.

Students can participate in summer ag classes, which includes agriculture, welding and other subjects that give youth opportunities in their home communities. A portion of the funding was dedicated to helping youth explore career paths in agriculture through field trips to local agricultural businesses and access to modern welding equipment.

“Some of our welders are around 1950, so we want to upgrade that so kids will be used to that modern technology and be able to get jobs right out of high school if they want,” Stewig says. “We’ve already been teaching with these new machines, and the kids have enjoyed learning with them.”

“These field trips will help broaden students’ perspective on the agricultural industry, allowing them to see the wide array of agricultural careers,” says Meghan Beckendorf, FFA advisor. “This experience will benefit both students and the local community by fostering a skilled and knowledgeable workforce.”

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Weekend Backpack Food Program, Scottsbluff, Neb. The backpack program services the Scottsbluff and Gering, Neb., School districts, providing nourishment to students in need. “We provide meals for students that are user-friendly for the kids, so over the weekend they are fed and can come back to school ready to learn,” says Deb Schild, program volunteer.

“We started this program in 2010 with about 50 students at the time,” she says. “Now, we have over 500 kids per weekend, and they receive a variety of food items.”

A protein, soup, fresh fruit, snack and juice are often part in the backpacks. “We want the food to be easy for a small child to open,” Schild says. “And some students don’t have access to a stove or microwave, so we get creative in how we can support them.”

Schild says the program is run by volunteers, like her husband, a retired Crystal Sugar foreman at the Gering facility. “He’s roped in all of his retired friends, and we pack all of our donations. And they are delivered by volunteer truck drivers,” she says. “All of our donations go straight into the purchase of these food items.”

Higher food costs make the donations for the backpack program especially critical. “This means a lot to us, starting off the school year with those extra funds were a relief,” Schild says. “We were able to purchase peanut butter this week that we otherwise wouldn’t have been able to send home with students.”

“We have a soft spot in our hearts for agriculture and for farmers,” Finkral says. “This program is happening again next year, with nominations and applications opening in the spring.”

Nominate a deserving organization in one of the six regions at achseeds.com