Firmly rooted in American AgCredit’s core values is an unwavering commitment to the communities where we work and live. Our customers are paramount to our nation’s food security, and their success goes hand in hand with their communities’ livelihood. That’s why we invest in our Local Community Impact program — it’s how we show up for our customers and their communities. We’re honored to support the organizations who share the same passion for the sustainability and viability of rural communities as we do.
2023 TOTAL CONTRIBUTIONS
$10,873,917
$11,695,900
$821,983
EMPLOYEE-DIRECTED HOLIDAY GIVING $500,000
THREE MAIN AREAS OF FOCUS
1
NEXT-GEN AG
American AgCredit is committed to investing in the future of agriculture, whether that be young and beginning producers, or the programs and practices that arise to serve evolving consumer preferences.
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2
FOOD FOR PEOPLE
We proudly support organizations working to end hunger, increasing the food security of our communities and indirectly supporting the farmers who are providing for our country.
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DISASTER RELIEF
We stand ready to support our customers and communities in times of need.
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NEXT-GEN AG
We know the importance of supporting young and beginning producers as they grow and learn the complex and dynamic business of agriculture. That’s why we offer specialty lending programs for young and beginning farmers, providing them access to financing that would otherwise not be available — and then we partner with local educators to equip producers with the training they need to succeed. After all, they’re the future of agriculture.
PARTNER HIGHLIGHT:
Alpha of Clovia at Kansas State University
Manhattan, Kansas
Alpha of Clovia is a scholarship home for young ladies moving to Manhattan for college who were in 4-H and FFA. Since 1931, Alpha of Clovia has cultivated community and academic rigor among women
from various backgrounds across the country, creating a strong support system among agriculture’s future leaders. When the Clovia Alumni Board purchased the home from the Kansas 4-H Foundation in 2024 and
were raising funds to help support that purchase, American AgCredit donated, along with other members of the Farm Credit associations of Kansas.
Greenhouse for Garden City Community College
Garden City, Kansas
American AgCredit contributed funding to a greenhouse for the new Crop Production Program at Garden City Community College (GCCC). AAC directed a total of $50,000 in 2022 and 2023 to the GCCC Endowment Association. The funds were specifically allocated toward the construction of a greenhouse, an essential component of the new program. This greenhouse will be integrated into the classroom curriculum, providing hands-on
learning opportunities for students. The ribbon-cutting ceremony to officially open the greenhouse took
place in spring 2024, and the first cohort of students began their classes in August 2024.
California State University, Fresno
Fresno, California
As part of the California Farm Credit Alliance, American AgCredit funds the Multicultural Scholars Program at California State University, Fresno. This scholarship program provides dedicated resources to the next generation of ag producers who are part of historically underrepresented and underserved demographics.
Recently, the program expanded to include a new high school and community college outreach effort that educates students in underrepresented communities about the benefits of continuing their education and pursuing a career in an agriculturerelated field, reaching 10,675
students in the 2023-24 school year. The expanded high school program adds to a long list of nearly 80 outreach efforts held each year by the university.
Farm Credit Grow Your Future Forum
Monterey, California
For several years, American AgCredit has been one of several associations within the CoBank district to sponsor an annual event that is designed to further equip young, beginning, and small (YBS) ag producers. This multiday, in-person workshop is
an opportunity to provide our YBS customer attendees with tools and education needed to help ensure the future success of their operations, as well as an opportunity to network with peers throughout the U.S. In 2023, AAC cohosted the two-day event in
Hawaii’s Future Ag Leaders
Hawaii FFA attends National Convention
Hawaii FFA attended the FFA National Convention in November 2023 thanks to American AgCredit and CoBank sponsoring their travel expenses via the Sharing Success program, totaling $20,000.
AgYouth in Hawaii
American AgCredit continues to support AgYouth in Hawaii. In 2023, AAC sponsored several projects for the program. This included sponsoring a local high school intern to work at Kualoa Ranch in Kaneohe, Hawaii, where the intern was given the opportunity to gain firsthand experience working with cattle, sheep, pigs, chickens, and various vegetables. In addition to this, AAC also provided seed funding to several elementary schools in the rural area of Oahu to purchase small gardening equipment for school gardening projects for first through fifth graders.
Monterey, California, with attendees from our regions in California, Colorado, and New Mexico.
To learn more, scan the QR code to watch a short video.
University of Hawaii AgConnect Program
For the spring semester of 2024, American AgCredit donated $12,500 to sponsor 10 student interns across Oahu, Maui, and the Big Island of Hawaii for an eight-week internship. The sponsorship covered half of each intern’s stipend, helping small scale producers overcome a financial hurdle and still be able to provide the next generation of ag producers in Hawaii with valuable hands-on experience.
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FOOD FOR PEOPLE
We believe everyone should have access to high-quality nutrition. Much of American AgCredit’s giving efforts focuses on local food banks, nutrition educators, and other hunger relief organizations across our footprint. Giving back to local food banks also supports the farmers who produce the food. Together, food banks and farmers are helping in the fight of food insecurity in their communities.
POUNDS OF FOOD DONATED
$821,983
2,959,139
PARTNER HIGHLIGHT: Soulful Seeds
Reno, Nevada
Since 2018, Soulful Seeds has evolved from a single community garden to a multifaceted nonprofit that is focused on improving food security and education for the most vulnerable populations. The nonprofit has four operating pillars: community gardens to grow and donate food; neighborhood gardens to grow food as close to those in need as possible; education to teach people how to grow, harvest, and prepare food sustainably; and workforce development to invest in
future employment that helps move people out of poverty.
In addition to donating funds to Soulful Seeds, American AgCredit employees volunteered at the new community garden to plant 50 fruit trees in 2023. In 2024, they also helped construct one of the new greenhouses that AAC supported funding, as well as planted tomatoes.
To learn more, scan the QR code to watch a short video.
Bidii Baby Foods
Farmington, New Mexico
Bidii Baby Foods, operating on the Navajo Nation, is an Indigenous-led initiative dedicated to increasing food security and promoting traditional foods. Through their Farmers-inREZidence program, they support young Indigenous farmers by providing 2-3 acres of land, piped irrigation, shared equipment, and direct mentorship from seed to sale. In addition to hands-on learning, they provide a guided curriculum and access to counseling services. The organization also collaborates with other Indigenous farmers to form an agricultural cooperative,
ICT Food Rescue
Wichita, Kansas
ICT Food Rescue saves surplus food from local stores and restaurants and distributes it to the food insecure population in Wichita. ICT Food Rescue’s runners collect and transport donated surplus to receiving nonprofits, and American AgCredit was proud to sponsor and brand a new distribution truck for them this year.
supplying affordable produce and value-added products to consumers, schools, and WIC programs. American AgCredit granted $15,000 to Bidii Baby Foods in 2024 as a part of our Rural Roots Endowment, which launched in the fall of 2023.
To learn more,
Merced County Food Bank
Merced, California
To fight child hunger in the community, Merced County Food Bank coordinates a backpack program that works with local elementary schools
to send food insecure children home with backpacks full of food as needed. In 2023, American AgCredit donated $10,000 for the backpack program, and employees directed an additional $20,000 toward Merced County Food Bank as a part of our holiday giving program.
scan the QR code to watch a short video.
Vindeket Foods
Fort Collins, Colorado
Vindeket Foods’ mission is to empower its community members to take ownership in the food cycle, and their slogan, “Run by the community, for the community,” could not resonate more with American AgCredit’s cooperative spirit.
In 2022, AAC employee Becky Steckel met with Vindeket Foods’ founder and director, Nathan Shaw, to discuss their most pressing needs
for the year ahead. Through this partnership, she saw their desperate need for resources like refrigerated trucks, pallet scales, pallet jacks, and coolers, as most of their equipment was either purchased or donated to them in heavily used condition. As a result, AAC donated approximately $28,000 in 2023 to fund the purchase of multiple pallet jacks, a cooler, a forklift, and a refrigerated truck.
Becky Steckel, senior relationship manager, reflected, “As I grow in my career, I am increasingly aware that
North Coast Growers’ Association (NCGA)
Humboldt County, California
NCGA is a nonprofit, membershipbased, agriculture-focused organization of producers and makers of artisan goods in northern California. In 2022, American AgCredit committed to continuing our year-over-year financial and technical support for NCGA, which enabled the organization’s 2023 move from a hybrid office space to a packer/ shipper facility with office space and on-site freezer refrigeration, materially PILLAR THREE
increasing NCGA’s facility space and distribution capacity.
Thanks to AAC employee and underwriting professional Walt Geist, who has spearheaded our partnership with NCGA over the years, NCGA is now better equipped to effectively manage farmers markets across Humboldt County and deliver multifarm CSA subscription boxes. NCGA’s long-term plans include creating an
DISASTER RELIEF
When a disaster hits our industry, regardless of geography, we stand ready with other Farm Credit associations across the country to support our communities with both near-term relief and long-term recovery efforts. When wildfires devastated Hawaii in 2023, American AgCredit joined forces with rural banking partner CoBank and the Federal Agricultural Mortgage Corporation, also known as Farmer Mac, to donate $40,000 to Maui Food Bank to help get food to people in need.
we all have a responsibility to the local food system and communities in which we live and work. As a part of my work at AAC, I try to challenge myself to go above and beyond a quick, easy donation to a cause, and rather think about how I can use my time, resources, and capital to provide support for projects and solutions that are immediately impactful to my neighbors. I am honored to work for a company that cares about food and people as much as I do.”
emergency food delivery network, utilizing backhauling to sell to the greater market, and seeking grant funds to support other ag initiatives.
“It’s a winning formula for our community when we have the privilege to provide resources — both monetary and knowledge expertise — that meet an organization’s specific cause,” reflects Walt.
$40,000
We support the nonprofit organizations we work with at various levels, the highest of which we call our Harvest Partners.
HARVEST PARTNERS SHOWCASE
CALIFORNIA
Agriculture and Land-Based Training Association (ALBA) albafarmers.org
California FFA Foundation calaged.org
Center for Land-Based Learning landbasedlearning.org
Ceres Community Project ceresproject.org
Community Alliance with Family Farmers caff.org
Community Food Bank of San Benito communityfoodbankofsbc.org
Emergency Food Bank of Stockton stocktonfoodbank.org
