McCain Foods announces Farms of the Future initiative to demonstrate feasibility of sustainable farming

With the planet facing an urgent climate situation, the global food system must become more sustainable.

Producing more with less, and protecting the vibrancy of the land by enhancing biodiversity and soil health are critical priorities within agriculture to feed a growing population, responsibly. McCain Foods has long recognized the importance of farms to communities – and the broader world.

It is for this reason that McCain Foods has today announced its commitment to a new innovative program, Farms of the Future. The goal of the program is to advance sustainable farming practices by helping to demonstrate their scalability and their economic viability.

As part of McCain’s sustainable agriculture strategy, this program will collaborate with universities, technology companies and other agri-centric companies on dedicated commercial farms that will pilot regenerative potato farming practices and emerging agriculture technologies.

Although the program is in its initial development, the larger objective is to share knowledge gained across McCain’s extensive global potato grower network, enabling the rapid implementation of these learnings.

Once fully established, McCain hopes this program will provide showcase sites: demonstrating the power of sustainable agriculture and connecting McCain growers, customers and consumers.

Max Koeune, President and CEO, McCain Foods Limited:

“McCain has a long-standing track record of advancing potato growing practices around the world.”

“As an agriculture-based company, we recognise the urgent need to help address climate change challenges within the food system.”

“We believe the McCain Farms of the Future program will help to demonstrate that regenerative agriculture and protecting biodiversity can go hand in hand with economic viability.”

Max Koeune announced the Farms of the Future initiative during the United Nations General Assembly in New York on September 25, when speaking at the ‘Unlocking the Transformational Power of Nature’ panel event.

This announcement follows the Monday, September 23 announcement that McCain Foods is a founding member of One Planet Business for Biodiversity coalition (OP2B), a group of leading companies dedicated to protecting, restoring and promoting biodiversity.