Gift of Grain Fund Receives First Donation and Awards Grant
By Maura Teynor
June 21, 2023
The Richland County Foundation Gift of Grain Fund received its first donation of grain. Brian Alt of Alt Farms in Shelby gave bushels of corn to the Foundation’s account at Sunrise Cooperative Inc. in Crestline recently. The Foundation sold the corn on the same day as the delivery.
“We are grateful to Brian for making the lead gift of grain. The Board of Trustees wanted to work closely with the farming community and the Gift of Grain Fund is a great way to accomplish that goal,” said Foundation President Brady Groves.
The Gift of Grain Fund Committee also awarded its first grant to the Richland County Junior Fair Board to provide a variety of learning opportunities to Junior Fair exhibitors from 4H and FFA including clinics, project evaluation, Malabar Fun on the Farm Day, and county fair.
The Committee members are Alt, Donnie Clark, owner of Elzy Milling and Trade, Jess Ashby, Ohio Department of Agriculture Meat Inspector, Christy Keith, Richland County Fair Board member, and Adam Staley, Clear Fork High School vocational agriculture teacher, and FFA Advisor.
The Richland County Foundation Board of Trustees established the Gift of Grain Fund in 2021 with $15,000 to support local agricultural nonprofits. The fund can accept grain and cash donations from area farmers, companies, and individuals.
Farmers looking to minimize their tax liability while contributing to their community can donate crops to the Foundation at a local elevator. Gift of Grain accounts are set up at Centerra Co-op in Mansfield, Sunrise Cooperative in Crestline, Central Ohio Co-op in Fredericktown/Mt. Vernon, and Poet Bioprocessing in Marion.
Farmers should consult with their tax advisor to determine whether a donation of commodities is appropriate to their tax situation. Contributing to the Gift of Grain Fund allows farmers to avoid the sale of the commodity as income, while the production costs may still be deductible.
Here are instructions on how to make a Gift of Grain.
