Arkansas charity to aid British farmers

LITTLE ROCK, Arkansas (AP) -- For more than 50 years, Heifer Project International has fought to alleviate poverty and hunger throughout the world with its donation of animals. Now, the Little-Rock based charity, is seeking to help Britain's farmers recover from the foot-and-mouth disease epidemic.

The 57-year-old nonprofit organization is trying to raise $250,000 to donate to England-based charities for loans to farmers who need help replacing their livestock, paying for feed and running their farms.

More than 4 million cloven-hoofed animals -- such as goats, pigs, sheep and cattle -- have been slaughtered in the United Kingdom since February.

So far, the Heifer Project has raised $213,000 from U.S. donors.

"Being in the livestock business and being concerned about small farmers in the U.S., we realized how this would personally affect so many people," said James DeVries, who directs international programs for Heifer Project. "We just had a lot of empathy for the farmers in England."

Heifer Project is working on the program with its British sister charity, Send a Cow.

Heifer Project plans to hold the donated money until the farmers can restock, which won't be safe until the fall at the earliest, said David Bragg, a farmer and founding member of Send a Cow.

To avoid any disease carryover through animal feed, farmers have to treat or burn any straw or hay. After strict cleaning, a test batch of animals will be introduced to farms. Those animals must stay infection-free for at least three weeks before the farm can restock.

DeVries said Heifer Project plans to use British loan repayments to aid farmers in Africa to continue the cycle of giving.

"Instead of this just being a handout to the farmers in the UK, we hope they turn around and pass on the gift," DeVries said. "Then we can help farmers in Africa."

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