First, as you may already be aware, rail is the most environmentally friendly way to move freight on land. Our commercials highlight our ability to move a ton of freight nearly 500 miles on only a gallon of fuel. The work of many dedicated employees at CSX is focused on researching and implementing ways we can increase our fuel efficiency and minimize our environmental footprint.
Second, it’s important to understand that agriculture and food-related products are a fundamental part of our business. For example, in 2014, CSX moved a total of 419,000 carloads of agricultural products.
While our business is built on providing our customers with safe and efficient transportation, we also look for ways to align our business with opportunities to support the communities we serve. One area where we’ve seen this alignment is in helping to alleviate the constant struggle many Americans face to get access to fresh, healthy food.
The Conservation Fund states that “conservation starts with community.” This philosophy aligns with CSX’s focus on supporting our communities through many aspects—community investment, reduced carbon emissions, training a strong workforce, and ultimately, moving essential products and goods. As we say in our core values, “people make the difference,” and those people make up communities.
That’s why we’re honored to work with The Conservation Fund, and excited by the success we’ve seen in our programs together thus far to bring healthy foods to local communities.
CSX and the Fund created a Grant Program for Transporting Healthy Food. The grants can be used to support projects such as refrigerated vehicles for food deliveries, on-site and mobile processing, and purchasing storage containers to keep unsold food fresh. Last year, the program expanded the grant recipients’ capacity to provide nearly 118 million pounds of food to roughly six million people. We’re currently reviewing applications for our second round of grant applications to continue the program in 2015.
Capital Roots in Troy, New York used a Transporting Healthy Foods Grant to buy new tires for two fresh food distribution vehicles.
We’re also working together to support local farmers and farmers markets in West Virginia, a state where both CSX and the Fund have a long history. In 2014, CSX and The Conservation Fund teamed up with the West Virginia Department of Agriculture to provide classes about vendor recruitment, customer service and basic accounting to assist with the long-term viability of the farmers markets. We also worked to get the next generation interested in fresh produce. Throughout the summer and fall, children and their parents can shop for local produce using “Kids Koupons” and participate in food tastings and nutritional demonstrations at farmers market events at their local schools.
Doug Dudley supplies fresh produce to Kermit, WV area farmers markets and restaurants, through one of the programs that CSX supports.
The Fund’s local relationships and proven experience in conservation have helped our company make a positive difference to conserve the community while still focusing on what we do best—operating a railroad and minimizing our footprint on the environment as a part of the global supply chain. We’re thankful for The Conservation Fund’s mission to preserve our communities and their resources for generations to come.
All photos courtesy of CSX.
