Tyson and World Vision, a humanitarian organization, outlined their plans to help fight hunger through agricultural education during the Clinton Global Initiative Annual Meeting. Tyson will send selected employees to Tanzania teach farmers how to raise chickens for food and profit using sustainable farming practices. The program will include lessons on breed selection, keeping water clean, feed selection, housing and disease management.
"I've been to Tanzania and know it’s a beautiful country with hard-working people, but I’ve also seen the devastating hunger there and need for agricultural improvements," said Donnie Smith, president and CEO of Tyson Foods. "Our initiative isn’t about just giving the people of Tanzania money or food, it’s about sharing our knowledge and helping them create for themselves a sustainable source of food so they can lift themselves out of the cycle of poverty. We believe it’s the best way to help give them a hunger-free world and to provide well for their children."
World Vision estimates the project will reach 2,700 farmers and enrich the lives of more than 10,000 Tanzanians. The humanitarian organization will expand the education program to an additional 6,000 participants, which will indirectly impact another 24,000 people.
"Nearly 40 percent of the people in Tanzania don't have enough to eat and face food shortages and malnutrition. Yet, the country is full of hardworking small-holder farmers who simply need information and expertise to turn their fields into a rich harvest," said Richard Stearns, president of World Vision US. "That's why we are excited to partner with Tyson. By sharing the knowledge of one of the great food producers in the world, farmers in Tanzania will be able to build the foundation for a sustainable source of food."
The education initiative in Tanzania is Tyson's latest relief project in Africa. In 2009, the company helped people in northern Rwanda to build and operate an egg farm.
