A stroke of luck and a generous construction company donation lead to the foodbank doubling in size this year.
And it came just in time - before the instant spike in demand for parcels during the Covid-19 lockdown in August.
The Bay of Plenty Times' six-week Christmas Appeal is in its second week for the Tauranga Community Foodbank, which has a lot more room than this time last year.
Foodbank manager Nicki Goodwin said it used to have one unit that held everything it needed to operate; the food warehouse and all incoming goods as well as the preparation and distribution of food parcels.
"That made it very cramped and difficult to operate."
In July, at short notice, the neighbouring business to the foodbank relocated and asked if it would be interested in taking over the unit in four weeks.
"We were absolutely delighted."
Form Building & Developments knocked the walls down between the two units to make the units into one, free of charge.
"They did labour and materials at no cost, and that was unexpected and very gratefully accepted," Goodwin said.
Tauranga Community Foodbank manager Nicki Goodwin (left) and Jordy Gastmeier in the new unit. Photo / George Novak
"We had such a short time frame, it's amazing that they prioritised us like that."
Goodwin said the timing couldn't have been better, with the country going into lockdown a few weeks later.
The extra space meant the warehouse could move to the new unit where all the food comes in, is sorted, and stored.
Food preparation and making the parcels now solely happens in the space they've always had.
It was "much safer" as food being delivered and people picking up parcels wasn't happening in the same space which was always difficult to manage previously, she said.
The larger area allowed for better airflow, which helped regulate the temperatures.
Goodwin said the extra space also meant more volunteers could be on site when the country went into lockdown given social distancing requirements.
This was something the organisation struggled with during last year's lockdown with the limited space.
The larger area also meant more food could be stored and it was easier to have sufficient stock "to make sure we can meet any spikes in demand or any emergencies that come up".
