Land O’Lakes Venture37 (formerly Land O’Lakes International Development) celebrates its 40th anniversary in 2021.
To honor this milestone, Venture37 has released its 2020 Annual Report, which looks back on the critical work accomplished in 2020 despite unprecedented challenges.
Land O’Lakes Venture37 is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit committed to helping communities around the world thrive through agriculture. Venture37 strengthens economies by improving local agriculture, helping agribusinesses create jobs, and linking farmers to markets. Its goal is to deliver integrated solutions that help build and transform food and agriculture systems through more competitive markets, more resilient systems, more nutrition-secure communities, and more inclusive societies.
Venture37 was formed in 1981 in Minnesota by Land O’Lakes cooperative members, who knew from experience that uniting to improve agriculture can lead to healthier communities and stronger economies. Since its formation, Venture37 has supported more than 315 projects across Africa, Asia, Eastern Europe, and Latin America to enhance agriculture systems. The work completed over the course of four decades encountered various obstacles, from droughts to cyclones to the COVID-19 pandemic, but was driven by a united belief that agriculture can lead to healthier communities and stronger economies, which is good for us all.
Venture37’s long-standing affiliation with Land O’Lakes, Inc. sets it apart. Land O’Lakes, Inc. is one of America’s largest farmer-owned cooperatives, with $14 billion in 2020 sales, ranking 219 on the Fortune 500. It supports Venture37 project implementation with 100 years of expertise in dairy, animal nutrition, crop inputs, and agricultural insights and technologies. This gives Venture37’s development projects a unique global view of agriculture, food, and the power of well-functioning market systems. Land O’Lakes, Inc. supports these efforts as part of its enterprise purpose of Feeding Human Progress at home and around the world.
Venture37’s newly published annual report looks back on the critical work accomplished in 2020, ranging from supporting improvements to market systems to help women and children achieve more nutritious diets, to boosting crop productivity and resilience to climate change. In 2020, Venture37 assisted more than 1.4 million people through agricultural interventions.
Looking to 2021 and beyond, Venture37 is committed to strengthening existing partnerships and fostering new connections to build its capacity to drive inclusive and sustainable change. With an expanded portfolio that includes animal sourced foods, market systems, crops, resilient agriculture, and, of course, dairy and cooperative development, Venture37 is well-positioned to deliver integrated solutions that improve food and agricultural systems that foster healthy, resilient livelihoods for us all.
“As we look ahead to the next 40 years, we do so with a commitment to continue our impact the best way we know how — by collaboratively leveraging our expertise and the 100 years of experience of our affiliate Land O’Lakes, Inc. to drive inclusive, sustainable change,” said John M. Ellenberger, Executive Director of Land O’Lakes Venture37 and Senior Vice President, Land O’Lakes, Inc.
