Farmers Feeding Utah's first project: delivering lamb to Navajo Nation
Just a week after its initial launch, the Farmers Feeding Utah campaign has identified its first “Miracle Project” with a planned distribution of Utah lamb to several Utah chapters of the Navajo Nation in Southeastern Utah. The meat will be sent to the the Mexican Water, Aneth, Oljato and Navajo Mountain chapters of the tribe.
“We’ve been blown away by the initial response to the launch of this campaign and are looking forward to making this first delivery of food,” said Ron Gibson, president of the Utah Farm Bureau Federation, the organization behind the Farmers Feeding Utah campaign. “Through this first project, we’re able to help a very deserving group of people that have been hit hard by the COVID-19 pandemic and help some Utah sheep ranchers at the same time. These ranchers have had their market for lamb reduced significantly with restaurants operating at limited capacity.”
The Navajo Nation, the largest Native American reservation in the country, has seen higher death rates from COVID-19 than most states in the country. Many live in areas considered food deserts, which are areas with limited access to affordable and nutritious food. For some communities, unemployment rates are close to 100 percent, as many depend on recreation to fuel economies.
Contributions to Farmers Feeding Utah are being received at FarmersFeedingUtah.org.