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Cargill’s Black Farmer Equity Initiative creates new markets for producers

Cargill says its Black Farmer Equity Initiative has created additional markets and strengthened America’s food supply chain. 

James Monger, DE&I Champion for Agriculture Supply Chain with Cargill, says the program addresses shortfalls for markets, capital and information. “Black farmers don’t want a handout. They just want access. They want equal access. That’s all they want. In order to have equal access in their eyes, they want to be able to call up a Cargill or anybody else in their industry and get connected with the right person.”

The Black Farmer Initiative started a year ago and is training 10 million farmers globally by 2030, increasing supplier diversity by spending $10 billion with small businesses and $1 billion with certified diverse-owned businesses globally.

He tells Brownfield Black farmers should have more options to sell their products. “They may have been growing soybeans and corn, and we may need them to grow more protein. We may need them to work on alternative proteins like yellow peas. But these are concepts that many of them haven’t been exposed to before because they really haven’t had that access to markets.”

As an example, Monger says, Target sold shirts earlier this year made from Black Cotton. “Those are the type of dedicated supply chains that we believe more of those can be developed and we can connect that producer and that end consumer and facilitate those relationships and help build trust and create profitability for the Black farmer so that in time, they can continue to grow.”

Cargill says it’s recruiting farmers to participate with a focus on Alabama, Arkansas, Georgia, Louisiana, North Carolina and Texas.

James Monger, DE&I Champion for Agriculture Supply Chain with Cargill: