Demand for food assistance in Canberra has never been higher, OzHarvest Canberra city manager Bin Barnier says. But the recent acquisition of their third van improves the charity’s capacity to rescue and deliver more food, more reliably.

OzHarvest Canberra rescues more than 10,000 kg of food and delivers nearly 22,000 meals every week, supporting 70 not-for-profit agencies. Every kilogram of food equates to two meals, and all the food is supplied, collected, and handed onto individuals at no charge, Ms Barnier said.

In the 12 months to the end of October, the charity collected 518,000 kg, or more than a million meals – which Ms Barnier said was unheard of, but not sustainable for a team that consisted of two drivers, two part-time nutritionists, and herself.

“So we’ve pushed it till we could financially and with results justify another van,” she said.

“With only two vans on the road, it was always a very stressful situation. Because if we had a truck off the road – whether it be mechanical or whether it be a driver being unwell – I was always worried that if we couldn’t deliver, someone was going to go hungry. And because we were always chasing our tail almost, if we couldn’t catch up on the previous day’s pickups, we had missed the ship.”

By changing rosters and working hard, OzHarvest got missed shifts down from six a month to only three. Over the last two-and-a-half years, they had increased donations and deliveries from 27 to 43 times a month – or 43 tonnes a month.

“But that puts a lot of strain on the drivers because of the weight and the volume,” Ms Barnier said.

“For us, it’s not just about volume, it’s about the quality of food. We want to deliver the best quality food and the best mix. A lot of people will know there’s way too much bread out there; you know you’ll never be able to pick up all the bread; but we want a mix of fruit and veg and protein and dairy. And that fluctuates throughout the year.”

The third van will allow OzHarvest to take on more donors. They already work with 104 donors, including major supermarkets (Aldi, Woolworths, IGA, and Costco).

“We couldn’t take on any more donors before because we are at our limit,” Ms Barnier said. “But we will be working more closely with places like Parliament House and the national institutions to ensure that there is no food waste happening there in those organisations… We’ll make sure that any of that excess food goes to people in need.”

That excess food will be needed. Even having increased the food supply 1.6 times, 46 per cent of the charities OzHarvest supports can’t meet demand. Of the people seeking assistance, 31 per cent are seeking assistance for the very first time; and demand increased by 73 per cent in May.

“We’ve got people with two incomes, with young families, trying to get to work and pay childcare at the same time, and they are coming for the very first time for food assistance to all the charities that we support,” Ms Barnier said. “In a lot of cases, parents are going without meals, or they don’t realise there’s help out there.”

That food insecurity, Ms Barnier said, is due to the cost of everything going up: food prices, fuel, and mortgages. One piece of good news: OzHarvest has access to Bega Milk again after 18 months, a relief when milk and cheese have become significantly more expensive. However, Ms Barnier does not expect the situation to improve anytime soon.

“I don’t see the end of it, to be honest,” she said. “Hence, that’s why we’ve put on the van. We don’t put on a van and take off a van lightly.”

Ms Barnier recommends that people in need visit Ask Izzy, a website that connects people in crisis with services they require. Many ACT agencies also run food co-ops and pantries; VolunteeringACT has a list online.

To continue the charity’s work, Ms Barnier says OzHarvest needs more collaboration with the ACT and the federal governments, and with donors, whether they be food or financial donors.

“Our goal is to rescue as much healthy food and stop it going to landfill,” she said. “Our challenge with the ACT government and with the federal government is to make sure we get to the top of the tree because there are so many benefits of food rescue.

“Number one: it doesn’t go to landfill. Two: it feeds people nourishing food, and my belief is that will lessen the reliance on the health budget, because if you’re well-nourished and you’re feeling well-sustained and good about yourself, you’ll be able to get out there, and it will help your mental health, your soul and your body.”

Ms Barnier is encouraged by recent funding from the ACT government.

“That looks very hopeful,” she said. “It means that we have a good relationship, they respect the work that we’re doing in food rescue, and also the work that people like wonderful Claire Russell and Tess Delaine [OzHarvest’s dietitians] deliver week in and week out.”

The nutritionists run a six-week course (NEST) teaching people about nourishing food, how to budget, and how to expand the potential of their ingredients in a nourishing way, as well as some life skills (social connection and engagement).

A similar program (FEAST) is run in schools, exploring food waste and its environmental impact, healthy eating, and easy cooking.

“We’re here to build sustainable practices, teach them how to not to waste food, and to be self-sufficient,” Ms Barnier said.

Ms Barnier also urges the public to help if they can. Some locals have made heartening contributions to food rescue efforts, she said.

“Financial donations are absolutely necessary, and as little as $1 will help pay for two meals,” she said. “Maybe don’t buy that extra present for under the Christmas tree, but go straight to our website: www.ozharvest.org.”

All donations will remain local: they are identified by postcode.

But financial donations aren’t the only way to support OzHarvest.

ACT Container Deposit Scheme helps OzHarvest

“There is a novel way over the next couple of months that the community could get right behind OzHarvest and not necessarily dip into their pocket,” Ms Barnier said.

Recycling pickup service ReCollect will take cans, bottles, cartons, juice boxes and poppers to the ACT Container Deposit Scheme; the 10-cent refund collected from recycling these containers will be donated to OzHarvest.

“So, over this festive time, there are many drinks in bottles and cans that are consumed,” Ms Barnier said.

“It would be very easy for people like BentSpoke or Capital Brewing, hotels, apartment blocks, or households to come together and collect all those recyclable bottles and cans.

“Would you believe it? There are 100 million returnable bottles and cans used in Canberra alone each year, which looks like $10 million. I don’t expect to get anything like that, but $50,000 to $100,000 a year would certainly go a long way to helping us pay for the cost of that food van and increase our services in Canberra.”

You can also donate 10c bottles and cans at the purple recycle bins at Waves Car Wash sites across the ACT.

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