Margaret tends to her mustard greens crop in Mtekera village, Malawi.

Agriculture Impact

Bountiful Blessings for Impoverished Farming Families

Nearly three out of four people living in extreme poverty reside in rural areas, earning less than $2.15 per day. In these situations, parents struggle to provide their children basic necessities, including putting enough food on the table.

Cross Catholic Outreach and its ministry partners prioritize supporting agriculture projects to offer farming families a way to diversify their diets and enhance their economic potential. These outreaches train men and women to start and maintain home gardens and improve crop yields, giving them firsthand experience in stewarding God’s creation.

During the 2025 fiscal year, Cross Catholic Outreach supported 10 agriculture projects in five countries, reaching 1,387 people with tools, training, seeds and supplies. For example, in the Diocese of Suchitepéquez-Retalhuleu in Guatemala, our donors helped provide 200 families with agricultural training.

Fiscal Year 2025 Category Facts

10
Projects

5
Countries

Grants Provided

1,387
Adults

received training

919
Children

of farmers benefited

1,703
Students

fed through farming programs

BLESSINGS TAKE ROOT

THE DIOCESE OF SUCHITEPÉQUEZ- RETALHULEU

In Guatemala’s rural villages, extreme poverty often forces parents to skip meals so they can feed their children instead. These poor farmers rely heavily on the land for nourishment and income. However, without the proper tools or guidance, their crops often fail or don’t produce enough to sustain their families.

During the 2025 fiscal year, faithful Catholics stepped in to support the Diocese of Suchitepéquez-Retalhuleu’s agriculture training program, which provides seeds, supplies and guidance on agricultural best practices to 200 at-risk families. The training program helps improve the availability of nutritious food by promoting the production of staples such as beans and corn, as well as herbs and other vegetables, in family home gardens.

Yasmin, a mother of two, has a home garden where she grows tomatoes and herbs. Before, she relied only on rain to water her crops. The agriculture training program taught her proper irrigation practices, which improved the growth of her plants. She is grateful for the success of her garden and looks forward to selling tomatoes to improve her family’s income.

Fast Facts

History

Cross Catholic Outreach has partnered with the Diocese of Suchitepéquez-Retalhuleu since 2019.

Reaping Blessings

The program’s 313 farmers harvested approximately 1,055 metric tons of corn in 2025. The farmers were able to sell half of their harvests and use the other half to supplement their families’ meals.

Spirituality

The agriculture project improves health and nutrition and creates food security, leading to gratitude to God for abundant blessings.

Other Outreaches

Cross Catholic Outreach and the Diocese of Suchitepéquez-Retalhuleu work together to provide scholarships, safe homes, clean water and health, economic development and spiritual outreach programs.

Donate To Make a Difference

Donations from this campaign will be used to cover any expenditures for this project incurred through June 30, 2027, the close of our ministry’s fiscal year. In the event that more funds are raised than needed to fully fund the project, the excess funds, if any, will be used to meet the most urgent needs of the ministry.