Urbandale, Iowa
September 20, 2007
Farmer-led acre campaign will
feed thousands through World Soy Foundation
The Iowa Soybean Association
(ISA) Board of Directors is calling on Iowa soybean growers to
join them in making this year’s soybean harvest part of the
solution to world hunger. ISA board members are donating the
cash equivalent of 21 acres of soybeans to the World Soy
Foundation, which will use the proceeds to support soy-based
nutrition programs in developing countries where hunger and
malnutrition are widespread.
One acre of soybeans, approximately 42 bushels, can be used to
make more than 2,500 gallons of soymilk or more than 40,000
eight-ounce servings. When converted into soybean oil and soy
flour there is enough high-quality fat and protein to meet the
full caloric needs for 80 people for a whole month — and that’s
a conservative estimate. Therefore, the entire Iowa Soybean
Board donation can be equated to 840,000 eight-ounce servings of
soy milk or a month’s caloric needs for 1,680 people.
ISA President Curt Sindergard of Rolfe is one of the acre
donors. “It is gratifying to see the power of soy protein to do
good in the world. We hope that fellow Iowa soybean growers,
soybean processors and other allied industries will join us in
contributing to the important work of the World Soy Foundation,”
said Sindergard.
Iowa soybean growers and their peers across the nation have been
instrumental in the creation of the World Soy Foundation, a
501c3 charitable organization. Roy Bardole of Rippey serves as
vice chair and Roy Arends of Alexander has also served on the
World Soy Foundation board since its inception. The World Soy
Foundation works with private voluntary and non-governmental
organizations to deliver soy protein and nutrition education to
people who need it around the world. Projects sponsored by the
World Soy Foundation include complementary foods for children
6-36 months, school feeding programs and soy nutritional
services. These projects let soy be part of the solution in a
world where:
- Every five seconds a child
dies because she or he is hungry, according to the United
Nations Food and Agriculture Organization
- There are roughly more
than 400 million hungry children in the world today
- Food is an essential tool
in the fight against HIV/AIDS. An estimated 39.5 million
people are living with HIV. With improved nutrition, people
can have a far better quality of life as well as contribute
more to their families and the economies of their countries.
To contribute, go online at
www.worldsoyfoundation.org.
The World Soy Foundation is
different from the World Initiative for Soy in Human Health
(WISHH) Program that U.S. soybean growers also support. While
some of the work WISHH did in its early years was humanitarian
in nature, the World Soy Foundation expands on that experience,
says WISHH Executive Director Jim Hershey. WISHH will continue
to work with private companies in developing countries to build
demand and markets for U.S. soy products. “By creating the World
Soy Foundation, soybean farmers are inviting everyone to take
part in helping people improve their diets through educational
efforts and select international feeding programs,” Hershey
said.
To learn more about ISA, visit its Web site at
www.iasoybeans.com. For
more information about the World Soy Foundation, go to
www.worldsoyfoundation.org or contact Karen Edwards,
703-281-7600
karen@kcegroup.com.
The Iowa Soybean Association
develops policies and programs that help farmers expand profit
opportunities while promoting environmentally sensitive
production using the soybean checkoff and other resources. The
Association is governed by an elected volunteer board of 21
farmers.
Funded by the soybean checkoff |
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