ARDEN HILLS, MINNEAPOLIS – The global fight against HIV/AIDS has received a boost from a partnership between Ethiopian dairy farmers and Land O’Lakes, Inc., supported by funding from the President’s Emergency Program for HIV/AIDS Relief (PEPFAR).

Working together, Land O’Lakes — a U.S. food and agricultural cooperative with annual sales of approximately $10 billion — and members of dairy cooperatives in the highlands of Ethiopia, earlier this year, launched an initiative aimed at creating new economic opportunities within the Ethiopian dairy industry for people living with HIV/AIDS.

Land O’Lakes and its local partners focused their efforts on sharing the insight and expertise of North American Dairy Farmers with their Ethiopian counterpart to generate tangible benefits for HIV/AIDS-affected communities.

The program received funding under the Tom Lantos and Henry J. Hyde United States Global Leadership Against HIV/AIDS, Tuberculosis, and Malaria Reauthorization Act, signed into law by President George Bush in July 2008. This legislation authorized up to $48 billion to combat global HIV/AIDS, tuberculosis and malaria. While the connection between dairy production in North America and HIV/AIDS treatment in Africa may not be immediately apparent, the Land O’Lakes partnership in

Ethiopia maintains the largest population of cattle in Africa, an estimated total of 35 million cows. These livestock are often the most important resource for underprivileged Ethiopian households, providing nourishment for families and needed income through milk sales. The rigors of milking, feeding and sustaining a dairy herd, however, are often too physically demanding for people living with HIV/AIDS. The inability to participate in this key industry can worsen the economic standing of communities and the quality of life for families already struggling with the burdens of HIV/AIDS infection.

Land O’Lakes and its local partners are working to change this. Combining local know-how with the technical expertise of the third-largest North American cooperative, this partnership seeks to identify and support dairy- based income-generating activities appropriate for people living with HIV/AIDS. These activities include dairy cow feed production, local milk delivery services and low-intensity composting. Each activity has been designed specifically for people living with HIV/AIDS and accommodates their special abilities, as well as the constraints of treatment schedules. All participants receive robust activity-based training and can access small grants, enabling them to buy key startup materials. A substantial partnership staff will monitor and support these activities for the next two years, providing individual assistance to each participant and ensuring that new enterprises are as self-sustaining as possible.

Land O’Lakes, Inc., is a national, farmer-owned food and agricultural cooperative with annual sales of approximately $10 billion. Land O’Lakes is a Fortune 300 company which does business in all 50 states and more than 50 countries. It is a leading marketer of a full line of dairy-based consumer, foodservice and food ingredient products across the United States; serves its international customers with a variety of food and animal feed ingredients; and provides farmers and ranchers with an extensive line of agricultural supplies (feed, seed, and crop protection products) and services. Land O’Lakes also provides agricultural assistance and technical training in more than 25 developing nations.

SOURCE Land O’Lakes, Inc.