Regina, Saskatchewan, February 13, 2025 – The Do More Agriculture Foundation is pleased to open the 2025 Community Fund for rural mental health education. Proudly presented by Farm Credit Canada (FCC), the Community Fund empowers rural communities across Canada to create space for mental health conversations for learning, hope and change. When more people understand mental health, communities build better health outcomes for everyone.

Applications for the Community Fund are open until March 2, 5:00 p.m. CST.

“FCC’s steadfast and bold commitment to support rural community action for mental health is inspiring,” stated Dr. Merle Massie (PhD), Executive Director of The Do More Agriculture Foundation.

“Communities have told us, again and again, what happens at these events. They’ll say: ‘My community is leaving with new skills and a better understanding of how to support our peers. I’m proud to see this kind of change in our community.’ When communities tell us that it’s helping, we just want to do more,” said Massie.

“Mental health supports are a critical component in building strong and resilient rural communities. That’s why FCC is proud to be a longstanding partner of the Do More Agriculture Foundation and the Community Fund”, said Justine Hendricks, FCC President and CEO. “Providing tools, education, and support that foster mental health and resilience go a long way in a farm’s success, and in the vitality of rural communities. This partnership underscores FCC’s commitment to the mental health of Canadian farm families.”

The Do More Agriculture Foundation is excited by FCC’s commitment to increase its support which will allow more communities to champion mental health learning workshops than ever before. Last year, 140 communities applied for funding, showcasing a strong need across Canada for more mental health learning at the community level.

As the program grows, there is learning, including for Do More Ag. “Communities say that shame and fear can stop people from signing up for workshops. We are building additional resources for community champions, to help them touch and welcome a wide variety of people,” said Massie.

While communities are a top priority, The Do More Agriculture Foundation thinks about ‘community’ broadly. It welcomes champions from agriculture associations, small industries tied to agriculture, financial and accounting businesses, pharmacies and hardware stores, faith communities, rural governments and health care businesses and any other community-based champion to lead these events.

“We are so proud of Canadian agricultural communities. The number of communities who have applied for and hosted workshops with us has grown year over year, showcasing a growing appetite for communities to actively find ways to improve mental health,” Massie added.

Program offerings include the popular Talk Ask Listen and In the Know sessions, SafeTALK suicide support workshops, and intensive Mental Health First Aid training. A peer-to-peer grief support group will continue. The Field of Mind men’s mental health support sessions will expand in 2025. Specialized AgCulture courses will continue to provide mental health professionals with an in-depth understanding of the specific challenges unique to the agricultural sector.

The fund welcomes applications from across Canada. For further details and to submit applications, please visit The Do More Agriculture Foundation at www.domore.ag/community-fund.

Regina, Saskatchewan, February 11, 2025 – Farm Credit Canada (FCC) is pleased to announce that Drive Away Hunger partners have more than doubled their contributions from last year and donated 514 million meals in 2024.

Justine Hendricks, FCC president and CEO, announced the results at the Future of Food conference in Ottawa.

“This year’s amazing results are a testament to the hard work and unwavering dedication of Drive Away Hunger partners across the agriculture and food industry in Canada,” said Justine Hendricks, FCC president and CEO. “The industry has united through Drive Away Hunger, and the sheer number of meals donated highlights the considerable impact of this collective effort.”

The HungerCount 2024 report from Food Banks Canada revealed over two million visits to food banks nationwide in March last year. It’s FCC’s goal to encourage more collaboration and innovation to get food to those who need it and address important issues like food waste.

“Drive Away Hunger demonstrates the power of industry collaboration, connecting nutritious food to those in our communities who are in need,” said Hendricks. “By rallying together, giving generously and looking for new solutions, we are creating change. We continue to be motivated by our goal of eliminating food insecurity in Canada.”

Drive Away Hunger partners donate food and dollars to charitable food security agencies in communities across Canada, connecting nutritious food to those in need and redirecting food surpluses that would otherwise go to waste.

Westfalia Fruit, a global leader in the avocado industry is committed to utilizing all parts of the avocado across the supply chain. Avocados imported for retail, food service, and wholesale customers are carefully inspected. Any unsuitable avocados are processed at Westfalia’s facility into products like avocado pulp, smashed avocado, guacamole, and more. The avocado skins and seeds from the process, which were previously typically used in low-value applications such as anaerobic digesters, are now finding new, innovative, higher value alternative uses.

Having partnered with Efficiency Technologies, the valorisation of the entire byproduct channel of avocado skins and stones is assessed to optimise use, with the most recent development being an innovative technology extracting a natural, sustainable dye from avocado stones, with SAGES London. This marks a significant advancement in total crop utilization; the process extracts perseorangin (a rare and sought-after natural pigment) from avocado stones collected at Westfalia's UK facility. The pigment offers eight distinct shades ranging from light yellow to rich reddish-brown, creating new opportunities for sustainable colouring solutions across multiple industries. The specialized extraction method isolates perseorangin, which constitutes approximately 3% of the avocado stone, and processes it into a dried powder form, offering extended shelf life.

"This breakthrough represents a significant step in our journey toward our total crop use strategy," says Andrew Mitchell, Head of Group Innovation at Westfalia Fruit. "By transforming what was once considered byproduct into a valuable resource, we're creating sustainable solutions that benefit multiple industries. The ability to produce eight distinct natural shades while maintaining our commitment to use the entire fruit demonstrates the potential of innovative thinking in sustainable agriculture."

Expanding technology across industries

Besides the dye extraction, remaining materials from the avocado skins and stones are also processed into additional valuable products – for example, starches are directed to paper manufacture as a precursor to packaging production, whilst ground materials find applications in cosmetics as natural exfoliants, as alternatives to micro-plastics

The natural dye extraction process represents a significant advancement in sustainable practices, particularly as industries increasingly seek alternatives to synthetic dyes. The powder format ensures stability and ease of use across various applications, while the range of the eight distinct natural shades offers versatility for different product requirements. This innovation comes at a time when consumer demand for natural, sustainable products continues to rise across fashion, beauty and packaging sectors.

The commercial potential and versatility of the natural dye have already been demonstrated through several high-profile applications. The pigment's successful showcase at London Fashion Week highlighted its viability in sustainable fashion, while ongoing collaborations with industry leaders in cosmetics and packaging demonstrate its cross-sector appeal.

Away from the UK, the process shows scalability as plans are underway to understand how the technology could be expanded to additional Westfalia facilities in Europe, where more avocado byproduct can be processed using the same techniques, clearly this same application could also be expanded to Westfalia’s global operations.

The company's integrated operations ensure efficient collection and processing of avocado stones and skins from multiple production sites, which will help to maximize the sustainable impact of the initiative and builds upon Westfalia's commitment to sustainability and circular economy principles.

(New Albany, IN) –INDCO HS series floor mounted high-speed dispersers are ideal for mixing a wide range of products in production batches of up to 200 gallons. With a mechanical pulley control or a variable frequency drive to vary to speed, and motors from 5 to 20 HP, these mixers have the power and versatility to handle a wide range of material viscosities. All models are equipped with a 316 stainless steel shaft, and a 304SS dispersion blade (size determined by motor HP).  Industrial models feature enamel painted carbon steel frames.  Epoxy coated or all stainless-steel construction can be quoted for custom applications. Pre-lubricated heavy-duty ball bearings ensure smooth operation and eliminate maintenance. A pneumatic cylinder lift mechanism raises and lowers the blade for batch changeover. Holder capacity is 55-gallon drum – with capacity to 200 gallons for larger horsepower models if vessel height is less than 40 inches. TEFC and EP motors are available. A protective shaft guard, which prevents harm to operators while dispersing at high speed, is included with each model. An optional digital tachometer – 0-10,000 rpm, (not explosion proof) is available to more accurately determine speed.  INDCO HS series floor mounted, variable speed, high-speed dispersers are ideal for a wide range of material viscosities, so they can be used in a vast assortment of industries and applications.

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