Schools across Australia to receive free George the Farmer books thanks to Rabobank partnership

George the Farmer books designed to educate children on where their food comes from will be placed in 50 school libraries across the country thanks to a new partnership between Rabobank and the agricultural icon’s creators.

Rabobank’s Rabo Community Fund has bankrolled the purchase of 50 books by George the Farmer founders Simone Kain and Ben Hood, with schools keen to get their hands on a copy urged to get in quick before expressions of interest close on August 16.

It’s the second time Rabobank, Kain and Hood have joined forces to honour National Book Week, which runs from August 19 to 26.

Launched in 2012, George the Farmer is a fictional character featured in a series of educational resources designed to change how children think about where their food comes from.

Rabobank client council manager Yvette Loyson said the character’s down-to-earth manner and grassroots charm resonated “incredibly well” with young readers in rural locations and inspired city-based children to learn more about agriculture.

“Rabobank partnered with George the Farmer last year to celebrate National Book Week for the first time, and we were overwhelmed with applications from schools across the country,” Ms Loyson said.

“It was exciting to see that level of interest from children and their teachers and librarians in learning about agriculture.”

She said the book sets would contribute to increasing awareness of food and fibre production at schools, “potentially even sparking some children’s interest to pursue a career in agriculture”.

The George the Farmer story began in 2012 when founder Simone Kain was trawling the internet looking for farming books and apps for her farm-obsessed son George.

Ms Kain said the toddler was desperate to be out with his dad on the farm and she wanted to find something to entertain and inspire him while he was indoors.

“I quickly discovered there wasn’t a human farming character globally who was telling sequential stories about life on the land for children, let alone a modern Aussie farmer telling real, relatable yarns,” she said.

“In 2014, George the Farmer was officially born, with the story quickly spilling outside storybooks and into new mediums.

“More than 100,000 Aussie kids from the big smoke and the bush have connected to the earth, food and farm through the adventures of George the Farmer, his agronomist wife Dr Ruby and their twin children Lucy and Jack.”

Ms Kain said the George the Farmer team, based in regional South Australia, produced “fabulous” picture storybooks, music, and paddock-to-plate videos available to watch on YouTube and ABC TV.

There are also nationally-touring performances and free curriculum-aligned educator resources that educate and inspire kids to learn about where food comes from — along with how important agriculture is to everyday life.

“There are currently 13 George the Farmer books and counting, exploring a range of farming practices — from shearing, wheat and beef cattle to honey enterprises and robotic dairy operations,” she said.

“In each story, George the Farmer, Dr Ruby, Jack and Lucy pitch in to come up with solutions to challenges which mirror daily farming life — with plenty of fun moments as well.

“The myriad of George the Farmer resources are helping to educate and inspire the next generation.”

The agricultural icon will be mucking the stalls of the Perth Royal Show in September, after a successful year last year that helped boost his profile in the State and help the Royal Agricultural Society of WA to connect the city with the country.

The visit to the Claremont Show Grounds on September 23-30 will form part the character’s upcoming national tour.

Applications for the book sets are open from Wednesday, August 2, and close on Wednesday, August 16.

In 2021, Rabobank launched the Rabo Community Fund in Australia and New Zealand to invest in the sustainability and vitality of rural communities.