7-12 IAT Gifts of Grain

 The University of Idaho has a Gifts of Grain program where you can donate bushels of grain and get tax credits as well as goodwill.  I talked with Carly Raska,  donor relations  coordinator for the Gifts of Grain program:  “I would like to know if the gifts of grain is to be interpreted literally? We tell the farmers whether they take it to an elevator or a co-op or if they store it on their own property they can donate X amount of bushels to the foundation. If they take it to an elevator or a co-op they will have the manager put it in a separate account that is named for the University of Idaho foundation and they will send us a form that has how many bushels went to that elevator and will sign over control of the grain to the University of Idaho foundation so we work with the farmer and the foundation who then calls the elevator and says we hear you have X amount of bushels stored on behalf of Joe the Farmer for University of Idaho and we would like to sell that grain. The elevator sells it and then 100% of those proceeds go back to the University of Idaho foundation. When the producers send in the form that says how much grain they have donated and where it is stored, they have the option on that form to designate where they would like their donation to go.