Tremains staff Tremains team members (L-R) Lisa Swney, Yvette Gornall and Mark Francis promoting the 'Selling for Food' initiative along Cameron Rd outside their offices. Photo / Ayla Yeoman
Tremains staff Tremains team members (L-R) Lisa Swney, Yvette Gornall and Mark Francis promoting the 'Selling for Food' initiative along Cameron Rd outside their offices. Photo / Ayla Yeoman
Tauranga Community Foodbank manager Nicki Goodwin said the foodbank was very grateful to be part of Tremains’ “Selling houses for food” campaign.
“In the past 12 months, we have assisted 7213 households, feeding more than 22,000 locals.”
For every house Tremains sells in the Bay of Plenty during the next three months, it will donate $500 to the foodbank, said Tremains’ director, head of sales Hayden Duncan.
Tremains staff promote the “Selling for Food” initiative along Cameron Rd outside their offices. Photo / Ayla Yeoman
Goodwin the initiative would have a direct positive impact on many in the community.
“These donations will be put towards purchasing the nutritious food that people need most, items such as eggs, fresh meat, vegetables, peanut butter, cereals and much more.
“Fresh food items such as meat and vegetables are what most people are really needing support with.
“Having an abundance of these foods available directly impacts the health and wellbeing of people using our service.
Tauranga Community Foodbank manager Nicki Goodwin. Photo / Alex Cairns
Food insecurity in the Bay of Plenty
Goodwin said food insecurity in the community was seen in many ways.
“The price of food, especially healthy food, has become beyond the reach of many. Coupled with increased costs for housing, power, petrol — food becomes the thing in the budget that comes last.
She said they also saw older people struggling to afford, shop for and prepare food.
“We believe that there is an abundance of food in New Zealand. It is then up to us to make sure it is available to as many people as possible.”
The price of food, especially healthy food, has become beyond the reach of many. Photo / 123rf
Goodwin said many charitable organisations were doing what they could in the community to help tackle this.
Tremains was trying to do what it could to help the community with food insecurity.
“Within our team we have a number of partners who are involved in local schools and the impact on young people is a problem,” Duncan said.
“We hear of kids turning up at school having had no breakfast and a bag of chips for lunch as it’s more affordable than proper healthy options.
“We see the news with the statistics of food insecurity trends heading in the wrong direction and it is one statistic that most of us find hard to comprehend in NZ, that people are struggling to afford access to healthy food regularly.”
Duncan said housing affordability and supply had been in the headlines for a long time: “That’s not a quick or easy fix but people having a regular ability to eat is one that we can tackle and the only way to make a difference is to start, we are choosing to start here at home in the Bay”.
He said Tremains would be happy for othe companies to join the cause to coordinate and share resources “to make a bigger difference”.
Duncan said Tremains supported more than 50 not-for-profit and community groups throughout the Bay of Plenty.
“Like most New Zealanders we are aware that with the cost-of-living increases, the downturn in the economy and increasing unemployment that food insecurity is a growing problem in NZ. The BOP is not exempt from the impacts.
Tauranga Foodbank has a mini supermarket. Photo / Mead Norton
“It is our view that NZ has no excuses for food insecurity and is something that we can do something to assist with.
“As a team, there is no question that many of us through our day-to-day lives have come into contact with local people that need a hand up sometimes, currently it seems that the ones giving a hand up - the foodbanks - need a hand to help.
He said the locally-owned business was “built on a foundation of helping” and believed people in the Bay of Plenty were keen to help.
Ōmokoroa team members making the local community aware of the campaign. L-R: Anton Jones, Michele Louw, Janine Parker, Noel Banstead and Shonagh Harris.
“We are out to change the conversation in households experiencing food insecurity from ‘is there dinner’ to ‘what’s for dinner’.”
Goodwin said donations helped send kids to school with breakfast and lunch and provide evening meals for families feeling the pressure of rising rents and stretched incomes.
“The foodbank relies on your generosity to ensure families throughout Tauranga have something to put on the table.
“It doesn’t have to be a lot, everything is used and nothing goes to waste.
“You might have some fruit trees in your garden with an excess supply or perhaps more vegetables in your patch than your household can consume.”
