Woolworths gets behind drought-affected farmers

Australian grocery Woolworths has partnered with non-profit organisation Rural Aid to support Australian farmers and rural communities impacted by drought.

Aussie farmers will benefit from the A$1.5 million investment from Woolworths via Rural Aid’s Buy a Bale program.

The program aims to help farmers by delivering hay for cattle feed and providing other essential items. It will pave way to also increase the number of counsellors who are supporting the local farmers and their families, who are impacted by mental health issues due to the drought in the country.

“Our store teams in rural and regional areas, particularly in NSW and Queensland, have experienced first hand the impact the current drought is having on farming communities. Rural Aid has worked tirelessly over the past few years to help farmers impacted by the drought. Our support will allow them to focus on increasing their delivery of much needed livestock feed to farmers and other essentials as the drought continues to cause widespread impact to many communities,” Brad Banducci, Woolworths Group CEO said.

“Along with the financial commitment to Rural Aid we are also exploring ways our supply chain and logistics teams can support the organisation further. A number of our store teams are already engaged with Rural Aid at a local level and they will continue to work closely to support volunteering and further fundraising efforts for the organisation. This support will operate alongside the stores continued commitment to our other partners currently working to help regional communities.”

“The support of Woolworths will also help provide a boost to much needed mental health services to rural and regional communities via our counsellor program. Our farmers need face to face conversations, not over the phone or via sms, so having additional counsellors will allow us to build trust and respect through personal on farm visits,” said Charles Alder, CEO Rural Aid.

Source: Inside FMCG