National Feed and Grain Association

National Feed and Grain Association

Maura Bennett
Maura Bennett

The National Grain and Feed Association wrapped up its 125th annual Convention with an address by the Chairman and CEO of the Cargill Corporation.

Cargill’s David MacLennan spoke about the growing challenge of feeding the world in the face of climate change.

MacLennan: I think the greatest challenge facing the ag industry today is sustainably feeding a world that is growing rapidly in population. We’re soon going to pass through 8 billion people on the planet. They need to eat, they want access to better food and we need to do it sustainably. We need to figure out how to use more sustainably oriented agriculture practices. We as an industry have to reduce our impact. We have to be more thoughtful about how much water we use. How much greenhouse gas emission is there? How can we be better stewards of the environment, of building soil health? Inaction is not an alternative. That’s a threat to sustainability. We have to do something, we have to be proactive. We need to build solutions for the future. Nobody knows that better than farmers.”

Maclennan also acknowledged farmers and ranchers as the heroes of the food system for playing a critical role in addressing the Covid-19 pandemic. Cargill was forced to temporarily close meatpacking plants in Pennsylvania, and Canada after workers contracted COVID-19.

Cargill is one of the world's largest producers and distributors of ag products such as sugar, refined oil, cotton, chocolate, and salt. Cargill has over 30 protein processing locations across the U.S. and Canada.

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