Well-known Australian agribusiness company GrainCorp is offering another round of community grant funding this July.
GrainCorp is the largest grain handler on the east coast of Australia and has partnered with local growers and their communities for more than 100 years. Their community foundation program was launched in 2021 and offers grassroots organisations financial grants for projects that unite communities through a shared passion for growth. In 2022, as part of its grant funding efforts, GrainCorp awarded more than $300,000 in funding to community groups across the east coast of Australia.
There are two types of activities that GrainCorp funds:
1. Community-related programs and activities (maximum funding $5,000)
2. Community infrastructure projects (maximum funding limit $20,000)
Some examples of ways in which GrainCorp community-related programs and activities grant funds have been used include a mental health and wellbeing program for a local men’s shed, local arts and crafts groups and school holidays programs.
In the past, community infrastructure programs have funded such projects as infrastructure development or extensions of community halls, laying soft turf for children’s playgrounds and improving accessibility and inclusion improvements at a local sporting club.
GrainCorp’s grants program is open twice a year for applications. The first round for this year was in February, and the second round of applications is coming up soon, between the 1st and 31st of July 2023.
The February round of funding saw 26 overall groups successfully applying for grants which went towards a variety of valuable community projects. Overall, there were 220 applications from groups all around Australia and New Zealand.
GrainCorp Community Engagement Manager Kyle Docherty, says the community funding grants have been a wonderful success.
“It was difficult to narrow down so many fantastic applications to the eventual 26 that were successful”.
“We had applications come in from all around including Port Kembla, Geelong, Gladstone and even across the ditch in New Zealand”.
“What I would say to those groups who were maybe not so lucky in February is that we absolutely encourage you to apply again in the mid-year intake.
“GrainCorp is thoroughly invested in local community infrastructure developments, all of the applications we received were valuable proposals and we want to help as many of those groups as possible”.
Community engagement has been an important part of the GrainCorp model. They acknowledge that sporting clubs and community events are the lifeline of many smaller regional and rural communities. GrainCorp sponsorship opportunities, which directly target an event, activity, individual or organisation for financial support or in-kind through products or services are open for submissions year-round.
Sponsorship opportunities are not to be confused however with the GrainCorp grant program which in only a year and a half has successfully supported over 60 community groups and hopes to go even better this July.
“It’s great to see how awareness of our grant fund program spreads mostly through word of mouth and our online and social media promotional engagement”, says Kyle.
“Ongoing interaction and Communication with the communities we operate in is an essential and important part of what we do at GrainCorp and these grants have become an integral part of those processes.”
Funding applications will be accepted between the 1st and 31st of July 2023. For further information visit: https://www.graincorp.com.au/community-foundation/
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