Farm services business, Nutrien Ag Solutions, calculates it pumped almost $3 million into projects to bolster the safety, strength and sustainability of rural communities last year.
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Nutrien's latest Community Impact Report has highlighted the many successful programs administered by the agribusiness to support rural and regional Australia.
In 2023, Nutrien Ag Solutions allocated more than $2.8m to country communities to support their resilience and success through the company's national flagship programs.
Projects ranged from a partnership with CareFlight running emergency trauma training courses, to a scholarship program to encourage careers in agriculture and $160,000 for flood recovery assistance.
Nutrien's corporate affairs advisor, Mady Muirhead, said emergency trauma training with CareFlight spanned 45 regional locations.
"Participants learnt vital life-saving skills and knowledge tailored for the ag industry and regions they operate in," said Ms Muirhead.
The impact report also highlighted the continued success of Nutrien Ag Solutions Community Grants to 57 community-led projects.
"Our teams across every corner of Australia also invested funding and thousands of volunteer hours into supporting local club sponsorships, community events, school programs and other grass-roots partnerships to help their community thrive," she said.
Nutrien has a workforce of about 4000, working in agronomy, rural merchandise, livestock, finance, insurance, sustainability, real estate, water and wool.
Nutrien's staff workplace giving platform meant the company also matched employee donations to a range of Australian charities.
Under the auspices of its CRT retail rural products division, the CRT Primary Schools program gave $50,000 to enhance the school experience for regional students.
Nutrien's workforce turned blue in May for charity Dolly's Dream, raising over $62,000 to promote anti bullying initiatives.
Other specific highlights included support for 10 projects in flood affected communities through a $150,000 donation to the Foundation for Rural and Regional Renewal, plus $10,000 to kickstart a fundraising campaign by Rural Aid and the Kimberley Pilbara Cattlemen's Association after some of Western Australia's worst flooding in memory.
Nutrien's Katherine branch in the Northern Territory held a charity auction which helped raise $177,000 for the Isolated Children's Parents' Association.
New partnerships with universities across Australia were established to encourage more students to consider a career in agriculture through the launch of Nutrien's Harvesting the Future Scholarship program.
"Not only is agriculture an important source of economic growth, it's also the lifeblood of our regional and rural communities," Ms Muirhead said.
"That's why we partner with our farming communities to support the activities, projects, and services they need to be strong socially, environmentally and economically.
"In 2024 our focus will remain on sustainable agriculture with focus on education and young people.
"We are also looking forward to celebrating 50 years of Country Football in WA and the next round of CareFlight training is already underway.
"There's much more in the works for our ag communities."
Andrew Marshall
Andrew Marshall is the group agribusiness writer for ACM's state agricultural weeklies and websites. He is a former editor at The Land and has worked in various Rural Press group roles in Canberra, North Richmond (NSW) and Toowoomba (Qld).
Andrew Marshall is the group agribusiness writer for ACM's state agricultural weeklies and websites. He is a former editor at The Land and has worked in various Rural Press group roles in Canberra, North Richmond (NSW) and Toowoomba (Qld).
