Jeff Simmons, President of Elanco, delivered a powerful call to action to over 60,000 FFA members on Friday, October 31 during the 4th General Session of the 87th Annual National FFA Convention & Expo.
Elanco has developed a campaign to bring awareness and solutions to those facing hunger and malnutrition around the world. Those behind the ENOUGH movement, and the thousands who have since joined the campaign, are committing to build a food secure world by 2050. Mr. Simmons spoke about ensuring not only safe, but affordable, nutritious food for our communities. He offered statistics on a growing population and the impact that this will have on our food system; malnutrition is the number one disease in the world. He encouraged FFA members across the nation to take action and improve food security and support for farmers in their own communities, on their farms, and in social media by using their voice to share the story of food.
“Do something. Tell your story like you’ve never told it before and tell it to people who don’t know our story. Then do something to activate a solution now, don’t wait.”
Mr. Simmons evoked a range of emotions in the crowd when he shared stories of families unable to feed their kids and themselves. Many were brought to tears and motivated in a way that they never had been before. The passion that Jeff has for increasing food security and ending hunger is only matched by his belief that the FFA members he addressed on Friday will be the ones who take action and change the lives of millions.
“The theme of this FFA Convention is ‘Go All Out’ and we need to go all out.”
Find out more about the ENOUGH movement and commit to helping end hunger issues by visiting SensibleTable.com. Check out #Feedthe9 on social media to follow the conversation.
Listen to my complete interview with Jeff here:Interview with Jeff Simmons, Elanco
Find all our photos from the event here: 87th National FFA Convention Photos
