INTEREST
A little goes a long way thanks to farmer driven meat charity Giving a little is reaping big rewards thanks to a farming initiative aimed at preventing New Zealanders from going hungry. WORDS BY ANITA BODY, IMAGES SUPPLIED BY MEAT THE NEED
Meat the Need was launched during the first 2020 lockdown and sees generous livestock donations from farmers turned into mince meat which is then donated to food banks across the country. Since then, over 760,000 meals of mince have been provided to families in need. The charity works on the premise that if we all give a little, it collectively amounts to a lot. The last couple of years have been challenging for many New Zealand families, and Meat the Need is a simple way farmers can help by donating a little bit of what they produce when they can. There are 26 million animals processed each year in New Zealand and Meat the Need estimate just 5,000 animal donations are needed to prevent New Zealanders from going
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hungry. That’s just 0.019% of the country’s overall meat production. In addition to Meat the Need, another initiative, Feed Out, has also been established with donated milk going to food banks across Waikato and the Central Plateau. Feed Out has seen 92,000 milk meals donated so far and plans are underway to extend this across the country. Currently, Meat the Need and Feed Out supply mince and milk to more than 80 food banks, reaching large numbers of families in need. Ruralco is proud to support this fantastic cause. “Meat the Need is a really simple way to give back and support others in our communities. It’s a great idea which has gone from strength to strength thanks to the hard-working team behind the initiative, and the wonderful generosity of farmers,” says Ruralco Group CEO, Robert Sharkie. “Knowing that your donated livestock will help feed families both close to home and further afield, is a great way to show that community-minded spirit farmers are renowned for.”
There are many examples of farmers jumping at the chance to be involved in Meat the Need from around the country. One such farmer is Dan Schat, a dairy farmer in Darfield, Canterbury. His farm is in its fourth season where he produces A2 milk from 360 cows. When he was younger, he wanted to be all sorts of things but nearing the end of high school he decided on his path to be a farmer. Growing up he used to help out on his parents’ farms and more recently the roles have been reversed, with them helping Dan set up his own farming operation. Dan first heard about Meat the Need as it got off the ground a couple of years ago and was interested in what it was trying to achieve. He had a few beef cattle set aside on the farm for the family and when he realised he had a surplus amount of beef, he decided to donate one of the cattle to Meat the Need. That was the beginning of his donation journey. “Meat the Need is a good option when it comes to choosing what charity to support. For some people, it’s difficult to give time or money
