By Kate Proctor

As you drive around the countryside, you may notice blue and red signs posted in fields. Small and humble, they are easy to miss. But they are an indication of the long-term dedication of many farmers, agriculture supply companies, individual volunteers, and churches to reduce world hunger through the Canadian Foodgrains Bank. 
On our farm, we have been involved with the Belgrave Community Growing Project through a partnership of Knox United Church, Belgrave and Northminster United Church, Oshawa for 22 consecutive years, thanks to the commitment of my parents, George and Elizabeth Procter. It is something we have done for so long, it almost slips off my radar. Until the thank you notice comes in the mail and I see the actual numbers associated with the project. 
Our project relies on the support of local partners who are so willing every year to donate. We are grateful to Adam and Cheryl Garniss, Brett and Laura Fischer, Brussels Agromart, and Midwest Co-op, Belgrave branch. These businesses support the project by generously donating seed, fertilizer, and crop protection products.
Knox United Church, Belgrave, also has members who volunteer to help with the project. Depending on the fall, you could see a couple of different combines, grain wagons, and trucks all working together to bring in the harvest. Plus people administer and keep track of everything behind the scenes. 
Our part in the project involves providing 20 acres of land, planting, managing, and harvesting the crop. This year, Knox United was able to forward a cheque for $20,900 to the Canadian Foodgrains Project, which also includes donations of cash from community members toward the project. The total amount the church has donated over the 22 years adds up to $425 000! 
The Canadian Foodgrains Bank receives an additional $4.00 from the International Development arm of the Government of Canada for every $1 donated through the local projects. With this support, the total amount donated over those years is over $2.1 million from the Belgrave Community Growing Project to help alleviate world hunger. 
Thinking about this project makes me picture a drop of water, with many drops coming together to form a river, lake, or even an ocean. In our project, we have a number of people who come together to make it happen. Across Ontario, every time I see one of those little blue and red signs, I imagine a similar group of people, quietly going about their business of planting, harvesting, and organizing the project every year. The contributions of all of those groups join together, representing nearly 30 denominations, and include over 12,000 individual congregations across Canada. 
The Canadian Foodgrains Bank works with existing organizations around the world with the goal of ending global hunger. The Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) estimates that 783 million people world-wide suffer from food insecurity. 
When we think about global hunger, we may picture those images from newscasts of people starving as a result of famine, drought, or wars. While these conditions obviously exist, the Canadian Foodgrains Bank reports that this “accounts for only about 16 per cent of the total number of people facing hunger in the world. A more complete definition of hunger includes when people do not have enough food—or enough nutritious food—over a long period of time. This kind of chronic hunger is less visible but has major effects on people’s lives. When the body is not being properly nourished, it compensates by slowing down physical and mental activities. This affects children’s growth, concentration at school and work, and weakens the immune system, making people more vulnerable to disease.”
From the Canadian Foodgrains Bank website: “Every region we work in has unique challenges that are influenced by local culture, politics and history. Rather than implementing projects directly, we work with organizations who are already present in a country or community, understand the particular challenges communities are facing, and usually have a long-term commitment to the region and community. These partners are responsible for implementing projects on the ground.”
The Canadian Foodgrains Bank, while very active in Canada, is active in other ways as well. It is a one of 12 aid organizations that form the Humanitarian Coalition, a collaboration that works together to respond to international humanitarian disasters. Working together in this way with other organizations helps ensure that more money that is donated goes directly where it is needed most and reduces administration costs.
The organization also advocates for better food distribution policy around the world, in order to improve food security overall. “We are working to ensure that food assistance is provided in ways that strengthen long-term food security and nutritional needs of girls, boys, women and men in crisis-affected countries. At the global level, we work with our coalition partners to monitor the implementation of the Food Assistance Convention and other donor food assistance policies. We also advocate for greater accountability to communities that receive food assistance, including through better reporting and transparency on food assistance,” 
There are lots of ways to get involved with the Canadian Foodgrains Bank to help reduce world hunger. Working with a local group, donating directly, or volunteering through the national group are just some of the options. ◊