• by Karlene Lukovitz  @KLmarketdaily, November 6, 2009

Land O'Lakes has launched a multilevel -- local, national and global -- initiative, "Feeding Our Communities," to help alleviate hunger.

Locally, efforts by the Arden Hills, Minn.-based brand and its Land O'Lakes Foundation include partnering with KARE 11 television's "Take KARE of Your Community" program and the United Way. Every click on the donation button within the "Take KARE" area of the television station's site (kare11.com) triggers a $1 donation to local hunger relief programs from the Foundation, up to a maximum of $100,000.

Land O'Lakes is also partnering with General Mills and Cargill to sponsor the Twin Cities Hunger Forum on Nov. 10.

  The Foundation will also fund a national program with the potential to generate up to an additional $1 million for hunger-related programs in rural communities, through a combination of direct grants and the Foundation's Member Co-op Match Program.

"The percentage of rural households that are food-insecure matches, or even exceeds, the percentage of urban households," Lydia Botham, the Foundation's executive director, said in announcing the program. "As a farmer-owned cooperative, Land O'Lakes is committed to addressing the quality of life in rural communities."

The brand is also sponsoring a national "First-Run" program, with a commitment to delivering an additional truckload (approximately 20 tons) of fresh product per month to hunger relief programs over the coming year.

Globally, the ongoing work of the Foundation's International Development Division is being brought under the umbrella of the Feeding Our Communities initiative. The international division works with public and private partners to deliver food aid and economic and agricultural development assistance to nutrition-deficit regions and emerging economies.

This year, the International Development Division will reach more than 200,000 youngsters through the Global School Nutrition Program, and is implementing economic development assistance projects in 28 nations.