Foodbank Queensland’s Townsville Food Distribution Centre

Delivering Food Relief Across North Queensland

In April 2025, Foodbank Queensland began operating our Townsville Food Distribution Centre, following the generous transfer of assets from Food Relief North Queensland (FRNQ). This partnership marks a significant milestone in our continued efforts to provide food relief across North Queensland. We are incredibly grateful to FRNQ for their support, allowing us to further expand our reach to help feed more hungry Queenslanders.

Foodbank Queensland’s Townsville Food Distribution Centre plays a vital role in ensuring food relief reaches communities across North Queensland. This facility is not open to the public but serves as a hub where our Community Partners and schools can collect fresh produce, pantry staples, and essential groceries to distribute to people facing hunger.

From here, we work closely with local farmers, food donors, and transport partners to provide much-needed food relief to regional and remote areas in North Queensland. With the support of our generous donors and hardworking volunteers, we keep our Food Distribution Centre stocked and ready to assist Queenslanders doing it tough.

Whether it’s supporting everyday food relief programs or delivering emergency assistance in times of crisis, the Townsville Food Distribution Centre ensures our Community Partners have access to the food they need to help those most in need.

Foodbank Queensland is expanding to Townsville to better support northern Queensland and improve food distribution to regional and remote communities.

Food insecurity affects 36% of regional Queenslanders, compared to 28% in metropolitan areas—and this gap is widening. As food insecurity grows in regional areas, our Townsville Food Distribution Centre will help ensure more Queenslanders have access to nutritious food and groceries when they need it.

Our commitment is to provide no cost/low-cost food and groceries to Queenslanders who need them, including communities in Northern Queensland. We will continue to also provide disaster response and recovery support for Queenslanders.

We are also working in partnership with communities to address the causes of food insecurity.

FRNQ has transferred its assets to Foodbank Queensland and is no longer continuing as a Queensland charity. The nature of this asset transfer means Foodbank does not have access to or hold previous FRNQ financial supporter databases.

For any needs related to FRNQ’s past operations and donations made, please contact FRNQ’s previous manager: info@foodreliefnq.org.au

If you are a Queensland-based charity, not-for-profit, or community support provider, you may be eligible to become a Foodbank Queensland Community Partner. Foodbank Queensland works with over 350 Community Partners across the state to provide food and groceries to people in need. Community Partners offer a range of food relief services, including food hampers, low-cost grocery outlets, community meals, cooking programs, and street outreach. Becoming a Community Partner gives your organisation access to a reliable supply of food and groceries all year round to support your programs. To find out more or to apply, please email: members@foodbankqld.org.au

Foodbank is always looking for new local supporters and partners who can help to ensure no Queenslander experiences hunger. For more information on becoming a supporter of the Townsville Distribution Centre, please contact kim@foodbankqld.org.au

Foodbank is always looking for new local supporters and partners who can help to ensure no Queenslander experiences hunger. For more information on becoming a supporter of Foodbank’s five vital programs, including regional School Breakfast Programs, please contact Samantha@foodbankqld.org.au

Get Involved

Join our Volunteers

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By joining the Foodbank Queensland team as a volunteer, you will make a direct and positive community impact – helping us to get food to thousands of families every week. Your support will give food and hope to someone going without.

As of April 2025, we are offering volunteering positions at our Townsville, Mount St John, Food Distribution Centre. At this Distribution Centre, hamper packing volunteer roles are available.

Become a Financial Supporter

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Your kind gift helps Foodbank Queensland provide essential food relief to those in need across the state. Donations enable us to purchase pantry staples, and essential groceries that are distributed to our Community Partners, schools, and charities. Every dollar donated goes directly towards feeding hungry Queenslanders.

By supporting Foodbank Queensland you play a key role in supporting families, individuals, and communities facing hunger all across the state.

Donate Now

Become a Food Donor

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We accept donations of all kinds of food and groceries from farmersmanufacturers  and retailers throughout Australia. We also partner with food companies who donate ingredients and services so we can produce essential items like breakfast cereals, pasta, sauce and tinned fruit and vegetables. If you’re interested in learning more check out our collaborative supply program.

Donate Now

Getting food to Queenslanders
who need it

Providing 10,000 meals every hour to hungry Queenslanders

We provide food relief to

350

Community Partners

As well as

430

School Breakfast Programs

We sourced food to deliver more than

22M

meals last years

We are a not-for-profit, non-denominational, federated organisation operating in every state and territory in Australia.

Here at Foodbank Queensland, we believe that access to healthy food is a basic human right. Each week, we support 135,000 Queenslanders in crisis and provide breakfast to 52,000 children each school week. We work in collaboration with 350 Community Partners and 430 Schools.

Alongside food relief, we rescue surplus food that would otherwise go to waste, reducing landfill and protecting the environment. We’re also focused on long-term change, partnering with communities to build fairer, more resilient local food systems.

Respect

Collaboration

Our values

Compassion

Responsibility

Trust

Meet the Community Partners

Foodbank Queensland and Glencore Copper Refinery – Supporting Townsville Families in Need

Find out more
Foodbank Queensland and Glencore Copper Refinery –   Supporting Townsville Families in Need

Meet a Community Partner: The Y Queensland

Find out more
Meet a Community Partner: The Y Queensland

Meet a Community Partner: Nexus Care – Craigslea State School

Find out more
Meet a Community Partner: Nexus Care – Craigslea State School

Hunger crisis deepens, now affecting 480,000 Queensland households

Find out more
Hunger crisis deepens, now affecting 480,000 Queensland households

Meet a Community Partner: St Pete’s Pantry

Find out more
Meet a Community Partner: St Pete’s Pantry

Meet a Community Partner: Evangelical Mission for Salvation International

Find out more
Meet a Community Partner: Evangelical Mission for Salvation International

Meet a Community Partner: Kelso State School

Find out more
Meet a Community Partner: Kelso State School

Meet a Community Partner: Kingdom Makers Food Outlet

Find out more
Meet a Community Partner: Kingdom Makers Food Outlet

Foodbank Queensland hits major milestone in Townsville

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Foodbank Queensland hits major milestone in Townsville

Meet a Community Partner: Westside Community Care

Find out more
Meet a Community Partner: Westside Community Care

Get involved

Sustainable development goals

Foodbank Queensland’s activities play a key role in delivering on a number of the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals which are aimed at ending poverty, protecting the planet and ensuring prosperity for all.

Foodbank Queensland’s operations are strongly aligned to the following 8 of the 17 goals.
We provide food relief to Queenslanders experiencing financial hardship.
We rescue and distribute food to ensure no one goes without.
We reach vulnerable communities across Queensland.
We reduce food waste by rescuing surplus food.
We work with government, industry, businesses and Community Partners to fight hunger.
We supply nutritious food to support healthy lives.
Our School Breakfast Program helps children learn on a full stomach.
By diverting food from landfill, we cut harmful greenhouse gas emissions.

Farm to Families

Your monthly gift will help rescue food and feed families across Queensland.

Join our Farm to Families team

Hunger & Food Waste are big issues. But together, we can solve them. Join Farm To Families, our community of monthly givers, who are bringing fresh food to families in Queensland every single month.

Queensland produces enough food to nourish every man, woman and child in our state, but sadly millions of kilograms of food are wasted or spoiled before this food can reach households.  By rescuing food from farms before it is disposed of, and providing this food to vulnerable families in Queensland, our Farm to Families supporters achieve positive and meaningful impact in our community! 

1. Families NEED fresh food

All Queenslanders deserve access to good quality food, all year round. However, every single day, Queenslanders are going hungry.  We need your help to get fresh food to thousands of hungry families every week.  

2. Farmers have EXCESS fresh food  

We believe food belongs in bellies! But sadly, whilst families are going hungry, quality fresh food on Queensland farms is being wasted. Every year, millions of kilograms of food is wasted due to oversupply, labour shortages, and transport challenges. You can help get this food to Queenslanders in need and support our farmers. 

3. YOU can get this food to hungry families! 

Help get fresh food to families in need by supporting Foodbank Queensland’s Farm to Families Program.  Your generous monthly gift will ensure healthy and nutritious food gets to communities that need it most while supporting local farmers and reducing food waste.

Are you in? Make your first monthly gift today!

Join Farm To Families Now

 

Your monthly gift will help rescue food and feed families across Queensland.

Why Give Monthly?

By giving a small donation every month, you will be joining our Farm To Families team, and will make a big difference!

To be most effective, we need a strong base of Farm To Families givers who we can rely on monthly. In fact, 50% of our funding comes from regular donations from people like you. This reliable funding is what helps us continue food rescue programs and support families seeking aid.

Monthly giving is the most impactful way to support Foodbank. Without monthly gifts, we can’t effectively rescue large volumes of food, and provide support consistently to hundreds of families who need your support.

Foodbank supplies food to support thousands of adults and children experiencing hunger every single week. With your support, we can continue this important work and give hope to families in need.

Your Monthly Gift will:

  • Give hungry families fresh food weekly, with a $25 monthly gift! 
  • Rescue pallets of fresh food from going to waste! 
  • Support local farmers in Queensland!  
  • Help (Foodbank) transport food across Queensland! 

Chosen by you, your monthly gift is automatically deducted each month. This reduces our admin costs and means our small team can instead focus more on what we do best, rescuing food and feeding families in need throughout Queensland.

Join Farm To Families Now

Join Farm To Families Now

© Copyright 2025 Foodbank Queensland.
Donations over $2 are tax deductible.

Turn your empty containers into a donation and help those in need.

It’s as easy as 1,2,3

Foodbank Queensland is now part of Containers For Change enabling you to turn your recycling into cash donations for Foodbank. Donating is as easy as 1….2….3

Step 1 – Collect eligible containers.

Most aluminium, glass, plastic, steel, and liquid paperboard beverage containers between 150ml and three litres are eligible for a refund when returned to a container refund point. To be eligible the beverage container must:

  • Have contained a beverage product that is not excluded from the scheme. For example, cordials, and plain milk are not included in the scheme so containers that have held these products are not eligible for a refund
  • Display the refund mark. This is so that the container refund point operator can see if the container is part of the scheme. Most containers will already have a refund mark for SA and NT and these containers are eligible under Containers for Change. Beverage manufacturers have until 1 December 2019 to display the new refund mark on their containers
  • Be an approved container. Some containers are made out of materials that cannot be recycled. These containers may not be approved (by the Queensland Government) as an eligible container as the scheme requires that when a refund is paid on a container that container must be recycled.

Step 2 – Find your nearest collection depot

Head to the containers for change website and search for your closest collection depot.

Step 3 – Quote the ID to donate

To donate to Foodbank Queensland, simply quote the ID number below in order to make your donation.

ID: C10002907

For every five containers donated, Foodbank can provided a meal to a Queenslander in need.

Hunger in Queensland

Hunger in Queensland

  • Close to 400,000 households experienced severe food insecurity in the last 12 months
  • Close to 700,000 households experienced food insecurity in the last 12 months
  • 44% of Australia’s low-income households (earning less than $30,000 per year) are experiencing food insecurity.
  • Food insecurity is being felt more acutely in the regions (36%) compared to metropolitan areas (28%).
  • Food relief support from family and friends has dropped to 23% in 2024, compared to 27% in 2023.
  • Food insecure households increased in their awareness of where to seek food relief support to 47% in 2024 (vs 36% in 2023).
  • In 2024, 50% of severely food insecure households had adults not eating for whole days because they can’t afford food.
  • 32% of all Queensland households are experiencing food insecurity.

Explore the facts of food insecurity in Australia

Research and Reports

We are Australia’s definitive source of information on food insecurity and food relief. We publish several reports throughout the year, all of which can be accessed here.

Go to Research & Reports
Foodbank Hunger Report 2024

Now in its 11th year, the report reveals the widening gap between those managing to adapt to rising costs and those being left behind.

Read the Report
Foodbank Hunger Map

This groundbreaking tool provides a detailed snapshot of food insecurity across Australia, offering unparalleled insights into the depth and scale of the challenge.

Read More
Food waste in Australia

Ending food waste plays a big role in ending hunger, and everyone has a part to play; from production, right through to the way that we as consumers choose to shop.

Read More

PRIVACY

Protecting your privacy is of paramount importance to us. We value the privacy of all our stakeholders as well as the communities we serve.

If you’d like to learn more about the privacy policy in your state please select it below:

Foodbank Queensland collects your personal information in order to provide you information in respect of its charitable objectives, and, unless you opt-out or unsubscribe, may contact you in the future with information and provide you with donation information via any medium. Occasionally we allow like-minded organisations to contact you with information that may be of interest to you. Those organisations allow us to do the same and this way we can reach more people with vital information. Please advise us if you do not want to receive communications from other organisations.  Failure to provide personal information may result in Foodbank Queensland being unable to provide you with certain information and offers.

Our Privacy Policy contains information about:
(i) how you can access and correct your personal information;
(ii) how you can lodge a complaint regarding the handling of your personal information; and
(iii) how any complaint will be handled by Foodbank Queensland.

You may contact us for a copy of our privacy policy or for any queries you may have via email: admin@foodbankqld.org.au or mail: 179 Beverley Street, Morningside, QLD 4170 or telephone: 07 3395 8422.

Partner with Foodbank Queensland

We rely on our friends

Foodbank Queensland relies on good friends for many of the services that help to keep the doors open from freight and equipment, to strategic planning and marketing.

As a not-for-profit organisation, our pro-bono supporters make an incredible difference. Through collaboration, we continue to expand our services and impact across the state.

To find out how you can partner with us please contact our partnerships team today.

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Sam Gallagher
QUEENSLAND PARTNERSHIPS

Development Manager – Foodbank Queensland

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FOR QUEENSLAND PARTNERSHIP ENQUIRIES

Sam Gallagher

07 3435 5921

samantha@foodbankqld.org.au


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Carolyn Gibbs
QUEENSLAND PARTNERSHIPS

Partnerships and Grants Manager – Foodbank Queensland

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FOR QUEENSLAND PARTNERSHIP ENQUIRIES

Carolyn Gibbs

07 3435 5921

carolyn.g@foodbankqld.org.au


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Brendon Smyth
NATIONAL PARTNERSHIPS

General Manager – National Partnerships, Foodbank Australia

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FOR NATIONAL PARTNERSHIP ENQUIRIES

Brendon Smyth

P: 0421670515

E: brendon@foodbank.org.au 

 


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Foodbank’s Corporate Partnerships are built around a customised package aligned with your company’s mission and objectives to give back to the community.

If you’d like to find out more about becoming a partner of Foodbank, register your interest below. 

Our state partners

We couldn’t help everyone without the help of our generous financial and in-kind supporters


Join the team

Want to work at Foodbank Queensland?

We currently have several volunteer opportunities, visit our volunteering page to find out more and to apply.

Join Foodbank Queensland in our fight against hunger – you can explore current opportunities on Seek. 

View jobs available

Supporting 

Hungry Queenslanders 

In need of food?

Foodbank Queensland is the largest supplier of food relief, providing food directly to frontline charities across the state. If you or your family are in need of food, please click here to visit our Find Food page. This will help you find local food support near you.

Hunger In Queensland

At Foodbank, we believe everyone should have access to food. But, right now, 1 in 5 Queensland households are going hungry. That’s 400,000 Queensland households who are skipping meals or not eating for days to get by. Shockingly, 1 in 5 Queensland households experiencing hunger have dependent children in the home. With cost of living pressures impacting so many people in our community, families are being forced to choose between keeping a roof over their heads, paying essential bills, and putting food on the table.

As the state’s largest hunger relief charity, we collaborate with 350 Community Partners and 430 Schools to ensure food reaches those who need it most. Together, we support 135,000 Queenslanders in crisis each week and provide breakfast to 52,000 children each school week.

Real Stories of Hunger

Flood damage left Andrea with no home and no food for her children

When devastating floods hit her hometown, it was yet another blow for Andrea* and her children. They lost everything due to the flood damage – Andrea’s family home was destroyed, and all their food and belongings were ruined. As a young single mum, Andrea didn’t know how she would feed her children. Then Andrea received food relief at a local Foodbank Member Charity, where they provided cooked meals and were delivering crisis hampers and frozen meals to the community.

“I’d lost everything, and I felt scared and afraid… I really thought I was going to die. I’ve gone hungry before in my life, so not being able to afford food for my family was very traumatising.”
– Andrea

Mitch and his family need your help

Meet Mitch and his family, who are courageously facing a daily battle amid the cost of living crisis. His story sheds light on the stark reality that so many Queensland families are enduring, silently struggling to put food on the table. Mitch is a great Dad; all he wants is a better future for his kids, but being on the autism spectrum, with three autistic children, the financial strain and limited access to food has taken a toll. When Mitch needed help, he reached out to a Foodbank Member Charity; a place he could access nutritious meals for his children.

“School lunches are very stressful, paying for all the fruit and snacks. It’s also the meat and vegetables that have become too expensive… the things that are still cheap are the junk foods.” 

– Mitch

Help a Mum Like Amanda Put Food on the Table

After escaping domestic violence and facing housing insecurity, Amanda is now struggling with the rising cost of living. She does everything she can to care for her two young daughters, but each week she is forced to make heartbreaking choices about what food she can afford.

“There are times we’ve left with only half the groceries we need. Shopping becomes a game – trying to spot the reduced stickers, hoping we can stretch what we have.” – Amanda

Your generosity today can help Amanda fill her pantry with fresh fruit, vegetables, and everyday essentials so she doesn’t have to skip another meal.

Want to support Queenslanders in need?

Share Your Story

Have you received food support during a time of hardship? Foodbank would love to hear from you.

mystory@foodbankqld.org.au to hear how you can help raise awareness and support others experiencing hardship.

Share My Story