Kitchen Launch

Shepparton Foodshare’s commercial kitchen is now operational and it’s multi-faceted impact is heartwarming, belly filling and purposeful.

A commercial kitchen was identified, during stakeholder consultation several years back, as a valuable addition to Shepparton Foodshare’s food relief service.

The kitchen serves as an additional resource to increase the availability of safe, nutritious and culturally appropriate food, whilst reducing waste and making the most of every resource be it food, human resources and community partnerships to help keep up with the growing demand for food relief in the regions.

Shepparton Foodshare Executive Officer Dee Healey said, “the kitchen is an extension of our vital local service that not only provides for daily food relief needs, it is also critical in getting food to people in times of emergency and crisis. It also provides a wonderful opportunity for greater collaboration and to establish community partnerships.”

When one of the Shepparton Foodshare team had the opportunity last year to tour Shepparton Access and heard of the need for a larger kitchen to support their program that produces sought after preserves and sauces made for their Eco Store, offering the Shepparton Foodshare kitchen as a solution was the perfect fit.

The Shepparton Access cooking program has now been operating from Shepparton Foodshare’s kitchen two days per week since April.  Each week making their popular preserves and services not only for their Eco Store but donating half of their delicious bounty to Shepparton Foodshare to add to the food crates that are received by local people, helping to improve food security in our region.

To date the partnership has seen around 450 jars of preserves and sauces donated and distributed to local people, food that may have otherwise gone to waste turned into a product much needed by Shepparton Foodshare.  It is a beautiful example of what can be achieved via inclusion, participation and collaboration.

Dee said, “it is our aim to obtain funding to further expand the kitchen program to enable greater community partnerships and to prepare and cook nutritious and culturally appropriate meals to better meet the needs of our diverse community.  Additionally, there is the potential for the kitchen to be a part of a social enterprise further increasing sustainability and improving food security.”