Harris Teeter partnered with produce supplier Virginia Produce Company of Hillsville, Va., in May and June to raise $18,000 for scholarship and grant funds for Future Farmers of America (FFA) students in Virginia through the Growing America’s Farmer’s promotional program.
The Growing America’s Farmers program was designed so that a portion of the sales of designated products — sweet corn in the case of Harris Teeter — are donated to the National FFA Foundation, which designates those funds to state FFA programs of the retailer’s choice to support students pursuing careers in production agriculture, according to a press release.
“It’s so rewarding to see the growth of this program and celebrate the work of committed organizations like Virginia Produce and Harris Teeter, and their success proves what a blessing this program is to students pursuing careers in production agriculture,” said Growing America’s Farmers Founder Walt Dasher of G&R Farms.
During the past six years, the Growing America’s Farmers program has raised nearly $350,000 for FFA member scholarships throughout the United States, said the release.
The Matthews, N.C.-based Harris Teeter is in its sixth year supporting the program and has helped raise funds totaling nearly $40,000 for students in Virginia and North Carolina. This is the first year they have included sweet corn from Virginia Produce in the program and a formal check presentation was made at the Virginia State FFA Convention in June.
“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,” Karin Humanik, director of produce for Harris Teeter, said in a release. “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.”
Virginia Produce Company CEO Moir Beamer also sees value in cultivating the next generation of farmers.
“It was so rewarding to use our business to help invest in FFA members and know that we are helping them financially as they begin their studies in college,” Beamer said. “With the challenges we’re all experiencing from the farm all the way down to the grocery store, the whole supply chain needs to support our agriculture students. They’re who will be growing the food we need to feed the future generations.”
With more than 760,000 members in 8,739 chapters across all 50 states, including chapters in 24 of the 25 largest U.S. cities, FFA’s impact is widespread, said the association.
For six years, Growing America’s Farmers has continued to grow and recognize the importance of supporting the next generation of producers, said Dasher. “These results show the power of combined efforts. When companies work together for the same goal, everybody wins,” he said. “I can’t wait to welcome more grower-shippers and retailers into our program to secure the future of agriculture.”