In Australia, on any given day, about half a million households will skip a meal or reduce the size of a meal because they can’t afford to buy food. It may not surprise you to know that this number is increasing. About 2 million households ran out of food last year.
Brianna Casey is the CEO of Foodbank Australia, which provides food assistance to more than 1 million people each month. Through rescuing leftover food, and donations from farmers, wholesalers and retailers, Foodbank is able to distribute what Casey describes as “beautiful food” to households that might otherwise go without. Last year, it sourced enough food for more than 82m meals.
The reality of what’s happening in homes can be overwhelming. Casey says she’s seeing adults do “whatever they can” to shield their children from the reality of food insecurity.
“We’re seeing parents who are being creative with the truth about whether or not they’ve eaten that day,” she says.
When food does make it to the table, Casey says households are forced to compromise, forgoing fresh fruit, vegetables and proteins such as meat.
In the past, she says, many Australians were eager to help with donations. But as the cost of living continues to rise, the number of people who need Foodbank’s help is continuing to grow. Casey says about half of households experiencing food insecurity are home to someone who’s in paid work.
“It’s the simple case that expenses are increasing at a pace outstripping our incomes,” she says. “Those on the lowest income are experiencing it first, worst, and the hardest. We’re also seeing a real shift in the type of people who are experiencing food scarcity.”
This has impacts along the whole supply line. While Foodbank is providing food relief to more than 1 million people a month, the cost of sourcing that food is increasing. The cost of living doesn’t just affect individuals – it’s also putting a crunch on the charities that support them.
Significant support comes from retail partners. For example, in 2022, Woolworths Group donated the equivalent of more than 3.7m meals, comprising a mix of essential grocery items and financial help to support food relief. Casey says this support is crucial for Foodbank, which supplies more than 70% of the rescued food that goes to charities in Australia.
Photo courtesy of Woolworths Group.
“We simply could not do what we do without Woolworths Group,” she says. “We need a steady supply of products year round, and we are able to rescue huge volumes of food and grocery items from Woolworths supermarkets and Primary Connect distribution centres.”
The group’s contribution goes beyond food, she says: “Woolworths Group also supports Foodbank with transport, government and industry group connections, and advice on product diversity from cultural and nutritional perspectives.
“For every dollar donated to Foodbank, two meals are created, thanks to partners like Woolworths Group,” Casey says. “It’s a partnership that not only delivers us food and groceries, but measurable impact.”
Food is not the only essential Australians are struggling to access. As the founder and managing director of Good360 Australia, Alison Covington is connecting businesses with organisations that support people in need of essential household items.
While many of us are aware of food waste and scarcity, Covington says Australians are not as familiar with the need for items such as clothing, homewares, toys, furniture and computers. Research conducted with Deloitte Access Economics has revealed that $2.5bn worth of new goods like these end up in waste every year.
Demand for products is impossible to predict precisely, she says, meaning retailers are left with excess goods. Sometimes this is because a season has passed or interest in a popular TV show and its associated merchandise has waned. Without organisations such as Good360, these perfectly good products – unused and still in their packaging – would be left on the shelf or end up in landfill. Good360 works directly with charities and disadvantaged schools, acting as a conduit between people in need and the businesses that can donate life-changing products.
Photo courtesy of Woolworths Group.
“We get access to some fantastic new goods, and we can give them to families and children,” Covington says. “All these beautiful items that create that dignity and equality in society.”
Good360 is also seeing the evolving impact of the cost of living crisis. “We’ve had to help a lot more Australians than we originally thought were vulnerable,” Covington says. “It’s changing who we have to help.”
As essential items become cost prohibitive, many households are going without basics such as kitchen appliances, bed linen and digital devices that keep them connected with the wider world.
Like Foodbank, Good360 has retail partnerships that allow this critical work to continue. Woolworths Group’s everyday needs retailer, Big W, has partnered with Good360 to donate unsold or surplus goods. By working with Good360, Covington says, Big W can help smaller charities and groups that would otherwise not have been accessible.
Since 2018, Good360 has enabled Big W to donate more than $89.5m worth of goods, and this year goods are being distributed to about 1,500 community groups, charities and schools.
“Through that program, we’ve been able to deliver 9 million items into local communities,” Covington says. “Our charities and disadvantaged schools are over the moon when they get matched up to a Big W store, because it has the everyday essentials families need.
“We’re helping them [Big W] reduce their waste, but we’re also reducing need in the community by matching those two things up. It’s a very simple solution, but it’s very powerful.”
Click here for more about Woolworths Group’s work to create positive change in our communities
Learn more below about the Mini Woolies program to support the educational experiences of young Australians with disabilities.
