New program puts fresh chicken in the hands of those in need

Monday, January 19, 2015

by SUSAN MANN

Ontario chicken farmers can now start signing up to participate in Chicken Farmers of Ontario’s new chicken donation program launched today at the Daily Bread Food Bank in Toronto.

As part of the new program, called Farmers Care, Ontario’s 1,100 producers can each grow up to 300 chickens per year to donate to their local food bank. Chicken Farmers of Ontario has set an annual donation target of 100,000 chickens worth an equivalent retail value of $1 million.

Chicken Farmers chair Henry Zantingh says small flock chicken growers can also participate in the program. “If they chose to participate, that would be fantastic. There’s a great need.”

More than 375,000 Ontarians rely on food banks each month and that number continues to grow, Ontario Association of Food Banks acting director Carolyn Stewart says in the Chicken Farmers Jan. 20 press release.

This is the first time Chicken Farmers has launched a formal program for farmers to donate chicken to food banks. But the organization “has had a strong relationship with the Ontario Association of Food Banks and have supported them as Chicken Farmers of Ontario, the organization,” Zantingh says. In addition, many farmers support their local food banks with cash donations.

The idea for the program came from farmers, he says.

Program documents posted on Chicken Farmers’ website explain chicken farmers will collaborate with their selected food bank to determine an appropriate time period to grow the extra chicken and order 300 extra chicks from their hatchery for that period. The farmer would also work with his or her processor and the food bank to ensure the chicken products wanted by the food bank are delivered. The food bank receives the donated fresh chicken products and distributes it to their members.

“For myself, I will have a discussion with my processor to see how we can best do this,” says Zantingh, who farms in Niagara. “ I think there will be different arrangements with different processors depending on what processors do.”

Chicken Farmers has a food bank donation form that farmers have to fill out to track the donated chicken from the hatchery, to the farmer member growing the birds, to the processor, and to the food bank. Zantingh says the donated chicken will be tracked by Chicken Farmers of Ontario.

The new chicken donation program is made possible partly because of the Ontario government’s Food Donation Tax Credit, introduced in 2014 as part of the Local Food Act. Farmers donating agricultural products to community food programs, including food banks and student nutrition programs can claim a tax credit valued at 25 per cent of the fair market value of the farm product.

Ontario Agriculture Minister Jeff Leal says in an email provided by his press adviser, it’s too early to say how many farmers across Ontario donated agricultural products or how much product was donated under the Food Donation Tax Credit program so far. “While it’s still early to provide specific data, campaigns like the one launched by the Chicken Farmers of Ontario today show that we’re right on track.”

Zantingh says Chicken Farmers doesn’t know how many farmers will participate in the chicken donation program. But the first chicken donations should start being delivered to Ontario food banks in about two months. BF