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Eddyville Leads by Example

Volunteers from Cargill’s facility in a small Iowa town form their own Emergency Rescue Team, just one example of community involvement around the world.

January 01, 2015

Perched on the Des Moines River in southeast Iowa, the remote town of Eddyville is decidedly small. Eddyville is home to just 1,000 people and one of Cargill’s key corn milling sites, a plant that grinds over 275,000 bushels daily. It’s a big job, and a potentially dangerous one.

Given Eddyville’s small scale and remote location, the town does not have full-time emergency response services, meaning delayed response times and limited resources—a matter of great concern to Cargill employees.

To solve the problem, a group of Cargill employees volunteered to receive professional training, serving as alternative third party confined space rescue, medical support and HAZMAT control for both Cargill’s facility and the greater community. Their initial training ranged from 24 to 120 hours, and today, each member completes refresher courses on an annual basis.

The Eddyville team’s dedication and commitment to assisting others is but one example of Cargill Cares Councils, a network of more than 270 employee-led groups around the world that implement strategic community involvement at the local level. Like Cargill’s diverse work across markets, the councils’ efforts vary, from planting biodiversity gardens in developing countries to serving nutritious breakfasts at primary schools in Canada.

 

Volunteerism in Eddyville inpage
[image caption] From forming response teams to caring for the environment, a global network of over 270 Cargill Cares Councils create positive change in their local communities.

But every initiative shares a common goal: ensuring the company invests its financial and human resources to help meet business objectives while also serving local communities. As the Eddyville team says, they will rise to any challenge to make Cargill—and the community—successful.

[video caption] Cargill employees in Eddyville, Iowa formed their own Emergency Rescue Teams.