Foodbank Victoria Autumn Newsletter 2024

We think we’ve finally found ‘the one’.

It’s you,

of course!

Don’t worry.

It’s nothing to do with wedding bells. We’re talking about someone who cares about people as much as we do at Foodbank and deserves to be singled out.

Your continued support helped us deliver an incredible 23.9 MILLION MEALS to families and individuals across Victoria in the last year.

Flip the page to have your mind flipped (in a good way) by all YOUR good work and our ‘big picture’ plan to feed everyone.

A dream that we dared to DREAM.

Since the bushfires of 2019, Victorians have had zero time to reflect and slow down. Here at Foodbank, we’re focused on how to help everyone get back to living their lives again, beyond simply making it through to the end of each day.

WE’VE GIVEN OURSELVES A BIG MISSION

To learn how communities have been impacted over the last four years and understand how we might better respond to that. We call this our ‘Neighbourhood Assessments’ (yep – it has Sesame Street vibes).

Our team is currently getting to know all 79 LOCAL GOVERNMENT ‘NEIGHBOURHOODS’ in Vic, listening to people of every age and situation, as well as seeking out the food data that underpins their stories. By ‘data’ we mean “who needs what” and “where are the gaps”. Sure, it will take time –there are no shortcuts. But with these insights, we’re creating community food programs that will give everyone agency and power where they live.

These programs celebrate and support community through food. Growing food, social enterprises, learning and sharing how to cook, socialising in our cafes, and providing healthy food options through our social supermarkets. We want people who are trying to get through life on the basics to be able to enjoy what food can provide - a healthy body, healthy mind and social connection. TO MOVE FROM A SITUATION OF JUST SURVIVING TO ABSOLUTELY THRIVING!!

Turns out food is Love, Actually.

As a parent, your reason for being is making sure your kids have all their needs met, particularly the most basic ones, like healthy, nutritious food. Leileene, who has two primary school aged kids, was living with the fear of not being able to do this ‘simple’ thing. Brought up in an environment where people didn’t ask for help, she was expected to be strong and create a ‘picture perfect’ image. The thought of reaching out was terrifying.

An invite to a Foodbank market held in the lead up to Christmas at her kid’s school (held with our bestie partner Chobani), felt for Leileene like the first time it might be okay to accept some help.

“MY KIDS KEPT ASKING ‘WHAT DOES IT COST?’ I’VE NEVER SEEN THEM SO EXCITED TO HAVE FRESH VEGGIES IN THE FRIDGE BEFORE! I’M EXTREMELY GRATEFUL THAT MY KIDS HAVE BEEN ABLE TO SEE THAT THERE IS STILL SO MUCH GOOD IN THE WORLD.”

– Leileene

5.3

MILLION

With your help, our Christmas Appeal put beautiful, healthy meals into the hands of Victorians.

Feeding 57,000 PEOPLE A DAY takes more than a village. In the lead up to Christmas, we saw demand reach epic proportions, with dual income families all over the state struggling to afford food let alone Christmassy treats. We knew that working people could not get to charities during the day. Thanks to thousands of generous people like YOU, we were able to create after hours farmers markets in the North, South, East and West of Melbourne so all these hard working families could pick up whatever they needed, without stress.

More than 1,000 FAMILIES filled their bags and baskets with farm fresh veggies and fruit along with essential staples like bread, milk, pasta and rice… enough for 50,000 MEALS plus a few little extra treats which brought out the smiles.

The markets were just one part of a huge whole effort delivered hand in hand with our 500 CHARITY PARTNERS, 1,000 SCHOOLS and YOU. Together we made sure all those humble, hardworking families around Victoria weren’t forgotten. As if we’d ever let that happen!

Staggering stats –our last 12 months.

23.9 MILLION meals delivered

Enough to reach all the way to Japan!

33,000 pallets unpacked Would reach Mt Everest 5.5 times over!

74 MILLION volunteer steps

That’s 1,753 New York Marathons (ouch!)

US DO EVEN MORE IN 2024!

Want to

An orchard full of

sweetness

We didn’t have to ‘sweet talk’ any of the teams that signed up for our new corporate challenge Fruit Loop. They just put their best fruit pickin’ gear on and stripped the apple trees bare at Montague Orchard in Narre Warren on March 1 to raise fruit and funds for little old Foodbank.

As our weary travellers plonked themselves down for a well-earned feast at Stella’s Kitchen and some gastronomically entertaining chat from Attica’s founder and head chef Ben Shewry, 50,000 APPLES were already on the way back to Foodbank. Ready to be distributed to folks in need around the state. A tractor full of thanks to our amaaaazing teams of apple pickers: Chobani, AusNet, BildUrban, DECJUBA Foundation, Peters Ice Cream, McCain Foods, Repurpose It, Jamf, Salesforce, Villawood, Southern Cross Austereo and Woolworths.

Oh, and between them they raised buckets of $$. Head to FRUITLOOP.COM.AU to see the final result.

Here at Foodbank, it’s really important for us to be able to tell our story – but it’s no more important than looking after our planet, so we’ve committed to using sustainably sourced paper whenever we have something to say. If you want to go one better and only receive e-mail, hit us up at supportercare@foodbankvictoria.org.au

A food fight for Foodbank.

No really, we’re not kidding!

Here’s a sentence that will surprise you. Kids across Victoria are flinging food* to fundraise for Foodbank (phew… try saying that three times fast)!

*No ACTUAL food has been harmed of course. This term, more than 135 SCHOOLS are piffing and sloshing fake food as they take part in our brand new, feelgood fundraising day called Food Fight.

There’s nothing like mess, fun and slime to get kids excited about raising funds for a good cause! Know a school that might want to get involved? Scan this code.