Past Events – Picabeen Pop Up | Golf Day | Paint me a cake

Picabeen Pop-Up: Picabeen Community and Neighbourhood Centre hosted Foodbank Queensland’s very first Pop Up for which more than 90 hampers were distributed to recipients on the Northside of Brisbane. We were so very grateful to the neighbourhood centre for opening their courtyard to us enabling the community to access food in such an efficient way. On the day we had help from Brisbane Bronco Josh McGuire and Shaun Nona of the Broncos Younguns.

Annual Golf Day: Total money raised for this year’s event was $56,000 which included team registrations, raffle tickets sales, our live auction, and other on course competitions. This year we were joined by Foodbank Queensland ambassador Petero Civoniceva recently inducted into the NRL hall of fame making the rounds and discussing all things rugby and Foodbank.

Paint Me A Cake: An art exhibition & auction of works by Merton Chambers raised over $8300 with the net proceeds being donated to Foodbank Queensland. It was a great night spent celebrating Merton & his passion for cakes and charitable giving. We’d like to thank Merton for his kind words and generous donation not to mention all who attended making it the great evening that it was! Cookbooks are still available for sale, contact our office admin should you wish to purchase your own one of a kind cook book for $30.

Without the efforts of our benevolent donors and supporters we would not be able to make a difference in the lives of fellow Queenslanders. If you would like to hear more about future activities or raise funds on behalf of Foodbank we would love to hear from you.

A special delivery for drought affected Queenslanders.

With 57% of the landmass in Queensland drought declared, Foodbank Queensland is giving an immediate donation of 150 food and grocery hampers, which will help regional and rural families in need. The hampers were packed by Unilever staff, using Unilever products that were donated to Foodbank.

Foodbank Queensland CEO Michael Rose says the charity supports Queenslanders in need, including drought impacted families all year round, and demand is sure to increase over the next few months. The delivery is part of an ongoing commitment to helping regional Queenslanders.

“Queensland farmers are incredibly generous, donating more than five million kg’s of fresh produce last year. But we know every farming community is different. Most of the produce has come from regions closer to the coast. The drought affects many communities, especially those in Western Queensland, and we are listening to what the agencies on the ground are telling us. The drought has exacerbated the usual demand for food relief in some regions, and we are doing all we can to help local agencies meet the additional demand.” said Rose.

Aussie Helpers Co-Founder Brian Egan says the charity he started 17 years ago has been overwhelmed by families needing help. And he says he understands it is hard for people in metropolitan areas to understand the toll the drought is taking on regional communities.

“I get lost for words, but we all need to contribute to keep these farms going, otherwise they won’t be there anymore. And once the farms go, the towns go too”.

Everyone can help! With additional food supplies coming in from generous food producers and manufacturers, what is really needed are funds to transport the goods to the people in regional areas who need it the most.

Drought hamper pack day breaks records for those in need.

On the 21st of September, we hosted a drought hamper pack event at our premises here in Morningside.

With the help of two shifts of volunteers and lots of competitive spirit, the team managed to pack 3050 hampers in just six hours. Queensland added their 3,050 to totals produced by other Foodbank states to total over 10,000 hampers produced in one week.

Over the last eight weeks, the hampers have made their way out to drought-affected communities.

Once again a big thank you to our volunteers

Flight Centre Australia

A big thank you to our donors!

Goodman Fielder Food Service

SPC

Sanitarium Health and Wellbeing

Mars Petcare Australia

Volvo Trucks Australia

Subway Australia

Where to Donate

Foodbank brings the heart of Christmas to the red centre

Foodbank Australia, 20 December 2018 –The burden of feeding loved ones on Christmas day will be eased for vulnerable families in Alice Springs. Foodbank, together with one of its national partners, Virgin Cargo, transported Christmas hampers from Darwin to Alice Springs to help feed the hungry through the Salvation Army Alice Springs.

Delivering these hampers was Foodbank’s inaugural Youth Ambassador, 10-year-old Alice Ramsay, who boarded a Virgin Australia flight in Sydney with her mum and travelled to Alice Springs to bring joy to those doing it tough this Christmas.

Alice has been donating food and other necessities to homeless people around Sydney since she was six years old. She has funded her food drives with stalls selling sweets and homemade lipsticks, bake sales at after school care and via her mum’s Facebook page. Passionate to help on a bigger scale, she has teamed up with Foodbank as the first Youth Ambassador for the food relief organisation and is thrilled to be heading to the red centre to do what she loves doing – feeding the hungry.

“It really makes me sad to see people without food and warm clothes. I really enjoy holding my stalls to raise money for charity, I have been raising money at my after school care the last few weeks to help pay for the hampers and I’m super excited to be in Alice Springs and helping families in the Northern Territory who need our help,” Alice said.

Foodbank Australia CEO, Brianna Casey, witnessed first-hand Alice’s determination to raise funds for people in need and was blown away by her resourcefulness in engaging her local community, particularly through after school care. She knew instantly that Alice was someone special that Foodbank would be humbled to have on board to help fight hunger.

“I don’t know many 10-year-olds who would give up playing with friends to bake and sell cakes to raise money for those in need. Not only does Alice raise money, she also researches what she needs to buy, purchases it all, with the help of Mum, and ropes in friends to help deliver what can sometimes be two trolley loads filled with bags of food and essentials for vulnerable people in our community.”

Virgin Australia has been supporting Foodbank for more than five years and jumped at the chance to actively get involved with Foodbank’s campaign to ‘Bring the heart of Australia together this Christmas’. Aimed at its corporate partners, Foodbank’s goal is to raise much needed funds to get more food to Aussies doing it tough and to highlight the social isolation many Australians experience as a result of food insecurity, especially during the festive season.

Virgin Australia Cargo General Manager, Glen Moloney, said that Virgin Australia was pleased to help Foodbank provide an important service to the heart of Australia and communities in remote areas.

“We are always looking for opportunities to give back to the community. At Virgin Australia Cargo, we understand that our services can make a big difference to remote communities who may not have access to goods and services and we are pleased to help with such worthwhile causes,” he said.

The hampers, packed by the generous team and volunteers at Foodbank in Darwin, were filled with essential food items to help vulnerable families celebrate this festive season. Foodbank in the Northern Territory works extremely hard with limited resources throughout the year. They currently provide food relief to over 10,000 people each month, but demand is significantly outstripping supply. In fact, Foodbank needs 87% more food in the NT to meet the existing demand for food relief there.

“Whilst Christmas in Australia generally involves bringing the family together to share a meal, that meal can be hard to come by for many,” Ms Casey said. “We are so pleased that Foodbank is able to add some Christmas cheer by helping to provide food relief to some of the most vulnerable in our community”.

Meal matchmaker revolutionises food relief

5 December 2018 – More meals left over at the end of the day in quick serve restaurants, takeaways and cafes will soon be able to go to people in need thanks to a new collaboration between Foodbank, Australia’s largest food relief organisation, and an innovative new app called Y Waste.

It is estimated that at least 40 percent of food purchased by restaurants, cafes and other foodservice businesses around Australia ends up in the bin[1]. Launched in January this year, Y Waste enables the public to use their smart phones to find and buy discounted food that hasn’t been sold at the end of the trading day. The app already has over 500 registered outlets nationally – including Sumo Salad, Sushi Hub, Roll’d and Muffin Break – with more coming on board every day.

Soon after going live, many food merchants indicated that, as well as selling the meals at reduced prices, they wanted to offer some to people who need them in their communities for free. Y Waste approached Foodbank to help create a way for local charities to give people seeking food relief the means to access free meals via the app.

A trial in an inner Sydney suburb has proved that Y Waste is a great matchmaker for merchants who don’t want to throw good food away and people who might otherwise go hungry.

Speaking on the new partnership, Foodbank Australia CEO Brianna Casey, said: “Accessing the short-life prepared food generated by cafes and quick serve restaurants has always been logistically challenging for the food rescue sector. Y Waste removes the barriers and enables the meals to go straight into the hands of people who need them.”

“Not only is the food fresh and high quality but there is plenty of variety giving food insecure people choice and dignity in obtaining the help they need to feed themselves and their families,” Brianna said.

The way in which people access meals via Y Waste is a totally new approach to the provision of food relief. With the help of a local Foodbank-registered charity, those in need sign up to the Y Waste app using a special code. They can then select their choice of the meals being offered on the app free of charge. They collect the meal from the food outlet at a certain time by showing their voucher on their smart phone just as any other user of Y Waste does.

According to the founder of Y Waste, Ian Price, the interest from food merchants keen to do the right thing has been overwhelming. “Ninety percent of the food outlets we’ve spoken to want to donate meals in their communities and the indication is that over half of all the meals being offered through Y Waste will end up with people who can’t afford to buy them.”

With over 80,000 food outlets in Australia there is potential for tens of thousands of meals to go to people experiencing food poverty each day. Y Waste will be progressively rolling out availability of the ‘Foodbank Meals’ around Australia during 2019.

About Y Waste

With its focus on food retail, Y Waste’s purpose is to reduce both food insecurity and the negative environmental and economic impacts of food waste. Its unique app and community-conscientious partners manages to do both.

Y Waste targets short-life food offered for donation from food retailers which food charities are unable to collect for various reasons. By linking food retailers with end recipients in the local community, its new food donation platform connects donators directly with end-recipients. Donating food is now no longer restricted by quantity, nature or geographical location.

[1] RMIT Watch My Waste https://watchmywaste.com.au/research/

Young egg entrepreneur inspiring generosity and kindness

October 30, 2018

Eggs will be on the menu for families struggling to make ends meet thanks to a month-long campaign by 17-year-old egg entrepreneur, Josh Murray.

The founder of Josh’s Rainbow Eggs has grown his flock from 40 free range hens, when he started his egg business at age nine, to 10,000 today. His ‘ethical eggs’ are now stocked in more than 40 supermarkets across the state, including Woolworths.

With Foodbank’s Hunger Report earlier this month revealing almost 1 in 5 Australians had gone hungry in the past 12 months, Josh said he was compelled to help.

“It’s shocking and sad that so many families, including so many children, are missing out,” he said.

“No one should go hungry and I have the ability to share some eggs with Foodbank Victoria and make sure some of those people doing it really tough can enjoy good protein.”

For every dozen Josh’s Rainbow Eggs sold during November in select Woolworths stores, 2 eggs will be donated to Foodbank Victoria.

It’s not the first time Josh, who is soon to embark on Year 12 exams, has donated eggs. Over the past 18 months, more than 200,000 eggs from the family farm at Monegeetta (an hour north of Melbourne) have been donated.

Foodbank Victoria CEO Dave McNamara said it was heartening to see such generosity and social leadership from someone so young.

“Josh is inspiring. He’s the youngest of our food donors and among the most passionate,” he said.

“The families and individuals accessing food relief from our charity partners will be so grateful for the opportunity to enjoy Josh’s Rainbow Eggs. Sadly, we know that grocery items many people take for granted – such as eggs, meat and milk – are out of reach for most people experiencing food insecurity.”

MEDIA ENQUIRIES

Kimberley Nichols, Foodbank Victoria: 03 9362 8309
Alexa Viani, Foodbank Victoria: 03 9362 8333

Sheedy kicks goal to deliver 50,000 meals to Foodbank

22 October 2018

Kevin Sheedy has kicked the ultimate goal.

Today, the Essendon Legend lined up a shot between goal posts made of food hampers to help deliver a donation of 50,000 meals to Foodbank Victoria.

The final goal was part of the EnergyAustralia and Essendon Football Club ‘Goals to End Hunger’ campaign, supporting Foodbank.

Throughout the 2018 AFL season, EnergyAustralia pledged 200 meals for every Bombers’ goal kicked at home games. With 142 goals kicked over 11 home games, 28,400 meals were pledged. Bombers’ forwards Orazio Fantasia and Anthony McDonald-Tipungwuti helped deliver more than 3000 meals each through their accurate kicking.

Sheedy visited Foodbank’s Yarraville food distribution centre to kick the final goal – which saw EnergyAustralia increase the number of meals donated to 50,000.

EnergyAustralia’s Community and Sponsorship Leader, Jenny Odgers, said: “The work of Foodbank Victoria is crucial and we were thrilled to partner with the Essendon Football Club on the Goals to End Hunger campaign. They delivered 28,400 meals to people in need and showed real determination in 2018. We wanted to contribute a few more goals to support Foodbank’s great work so we rounded up our donation to 50,000 meals.”

Sheedy, on behalf of the Essendon Football Club, said it was great to see Bombers’ fans supporting the message of the campaign.
“Everyone deserves access to food. Sadly one in five Australians, including children, don’t have access. That’s a huge number of people going hungry each year,” Sheedy said.

“Our fans have really got behind this cause and we look forward to seeing where the partnership goes in 2019.”

Foodbank Victoria CEO Dave McNamara – a huge Bombers’ fan – said the campaign was helping to deliver more than just meals.

“We’re really grateful to EnergyAustralia and the Essendon Football Club for not only delivering a huge number of extra meals, but for also providing a platform to engage hundreds of thousands of footy fans across the AFL season. Food insecurity is a hidden crisis that needs greater awareness if we’re going to be able to solve it,” he said.

The 2018 Foodbank Hunger Report, released last week, found that 1 in 5 Australians had gone hungry in the past 12 months. It was revealed people living in regional and remote areas were 33 per cent more likely to experience food insecurity.

MEDIA ENQUIRIES

Kimberley Nichols, Foodbank Victoria: 03 9362 8309
Alexa Viani, Foodbank Victoria: 03 9362 8333

Hunger in the country is a big problem

Sunday 14 October: Today the iconic Big Banana on Australia’s east coast will be shrouded in black in a bold act aimed at drawing attention to our country’s big hunger problem.

Foodbank is taking this extraordinary step to mark the release of its annual Foodbank Hunger Report which reveals that more and more everyday Australians, particularly in rural and regional areas, are going hungry.

“Our country loves its big food icons – the Big Pineapple, the Big Prawn, the Big Lobster, but we have a big food problem that needs to be addressed – hunger in the country,” Foodbank Australia CEO, Brianna Casey, said today. “Our Foodbank Hunger Report 2018 confirms that 1.5 million Australians in regional and remote areas have experienced food insecurity in the past 12 months, which makes country dwellers a third (33%) more likely to be hungry than their city counterparts. This is even before the full effects of the current drought are factored in.”

The report exposes that, overall, 4 million Australians (18% of the population) have experienced some form of food insecurity in the past 12 months with 76% of these regularly eating less than they need because they lack the money or resources to obtain food.

Foodbank Australia CEO, Brianna Casey, says despite Foodbank providing food for 710,000 Australians every month, it is struggling to meet the demand.

“Half of all our charity agencies report an increase in the number of people seeking much needed food assistance, and only 36% of charities say they are meeting the full needs of the people they assist.

“Food insecurity is a growing problem which is affecting everyday Australians both in the cities and in the bush. We are doing our very best to address this problem, but we need support from our government and our community to help these vulnerable Aussies in need.”

The public can help Foodbank tackle this big problem by joining the growing movement on social media using the hashtags #BigProblem and #ZeroHunger, donating at www.foodbank.org.au or asking their local Federal Member of Parliament what they are doing to address food insecurity in Australia.

New hamper program helping keep hope alive for those escaping homelessness

14 June 2018

People entering crisis accommodation will be supported by a new partnership between Foodbank Victoria and Launch Housing, one of Melbourne’s leading homelessness organisations.

With rates of homelessness and waiting lists for public housing at an all-time high, the new Essential Pantry Program will help relieve pressure on people transitioning into 600 of Launch Housing’s crisis accommodation sites.

“It’s the small things that can really make a difference. Moving into crisis accommodation and being supplied with an essential hamper makes you feel like somebody cares. It’s these things that help keep hope alive,” said Emma, a former recipient of Launch Housing services.

New tenants will receive hampers filled with personal hygiene items, generously donated by Foodbank partner Asaleo Care, and staple food items sourced by Foodbank. Each hamper is valued at $245.

“It’s clear that the housing crisis is hitting people hard. With the exponential increase in housing prices and the decrease in affordable and appropriate accommodation, many families and individuals are being forced into homelessness and crisis housing,” said Foodbank Victoria CEO Dave McNamara.

Last month Launch Housing released its Australian Homelessness Monitor, highlighting the scope of the housing problem. Between 2011 and 2016, homelessness increased by 14 per cent and rough sleeping by 20 per cent in Australia. In Victoria, almost 25,000 people were homeless on Census night in 2016.

Last week, a parliamentary inquiry revealed 82,000 people, including 25,000 children, are on the waiting list for public housing in Victoria.

“The Essential Pantry program is a targeted approach to help alleviate some of the worry and financial pressure for people transitioning into temporary accommodation – whether due to being priced out of the rental market or fleeing a dangerous or unstable home life,” Mr McNamara said.

“Over the next 12 months we hope to prove the benefits of the program so it can be rolled out more widely.”

Heather Holst, Acting CEO of Launch Housing, welcomed the partnership.

“Thanks to Foodbank and Asaleo Care, these hampers of food and personal products will go a long way in welcoming our clients into their new homes in the coming year,” she said.

“Sadly, lower income households are at a greater risk of experiencing poverty as housing prices and the cost of living — particularly food — continues to rise. This partnership means that new tenants in all our transitional and long-term housing, will have a solid starting point in their next chapter.”

To kick off the program, volunteers from Asaleo Care will pack the hygiene hampers, including sanitary items, nappies, toilet paper and other necessities that are costly yet vital, at the Foodbank Victoria warehouse on June 14.

“Asaleo Care makes many of the essential products people use every day in Australia, New Zealand and the Pacific Islands. Our popular products like Sorbent, Libra, Handee Ultra and Deeko can be found in every household. Most of us don’t think twice about being able to buy them,” said Sid Takla, Interim CEO, Asaleo Care.

“But not everyone. For some, access to food, clothing and shelter is a major struggle – anything more is out of reach. That’s why we’ve joined with Launch Housing through Foodbank to help make it easier for hygiene, health and wellbeing to be part of everyday life for everyone. Taking care is at the heart of what we do. We’re very proud to be a leading supporter of this initiative.”

MEDIA ENQUIRIES

Kimberley Nichols, Foodbank Victoria: 03 9362 8309
Alexa Viani, Foodbank Victoria: 03 9362 8333

15 April 2018 – Australia’s largest hunger relief organisation, Foodbank, has revealed that it is more likely for a child in Australia to go hungry than an adult in 2018.

This morning, Foodbank released its first ever research report on the prevalence of child hunger in Australia. Entitled Rumbling Tummies, the report found that while 15% of Australian adults have experienced food insecurity in the last year, more than 1 in 5 children in Australia (22%) have experienced food insecurity over the same period.

Foodbank found hunger amongst Australian kids is more common than once imagined, with 1 in 3 parents living in food insecure homes saying their children go hungry at least once a month. Meanwhile, at least once a week, 18% of food insecure children go to school without eating breakfast, 15% go to school without a packed lunch or lunch money and 11% go to bed without eating dinner.

With data collated from more than a thousand Australian parents with children under the age of 15, Foodbank uncovered that the major factor driving the growing need for hunger relief in Australia is the rising cost of living. An unexpected bill or expense (52%) and house payments (38%) are two of the most prominent causes of food insecurity in homes with children under 15, the organisation found.

Foodbank Australia’s CEO, Brianna Casey, said, “It is both heartbreaking and unacceptable to hear that children are going hungry anywhere in the world, let alone in Australia. As the cost of living continues to rise, parents are really feeling the strain of these financial pressures on their household budgets, forcing some to make impossible decisions for their families. Nine out of ten of these parents tell us that they have skipped meals so their children can have food on their plates, with 36% skipping meals on a weekly basis.”

Foodbank provides food for over 652,000 people a month, however, their front-line charity partners report that demand for food relief has increased by 10% in the last year. Furthermore, they are forced to turn away 65,000 people every month due to lack of food.

“As a community, we might be excused for not hearing one child’s stomach rumbling, but we simply cannot ignore the sound of thousands of children going hungry in Australia each day,” said Casey.

“If we want all our children to thrive and succeed, we can’t let their hunger go unheard. Whether you are from corporate Australia, government, or someone who believes in a better Australia, we really do owe it to these children to ensure Foodbank can get more food to the most vulnerable in our community,” Casey concluded.