H¯awera’s free-food shop provides top-up service
A shop where all the food on the shelves is free is preparing to open its doors in Ha¯ wera.
The Kai Kitchen Trust has set up the shop to give away donated food that would otherwise be wasted, and it will be open to anybody, Kai Kitchen founder Rochelle Steer said.
It is not intended to replace people’s weekly shop, but as a topup, she said.
The new Zero Waste Free Food Store opens at 12 Union St on Tuesday, just two days before the trust, which provides lunches for school children who need them in South and central Taranaki, celebrates its sixth birthday.
The shelves contain tinned food, cereal, coffee and tea, snacks and biscuits, and even Easter eggs.
There will also be fresh produce, bakery items and a shelf of food donated each week by Pak ‘N Save, Steer said.
Some food is in dented tins or damaged packets, or has reached its use by date, but is still good to eat.
‘‘This is food that would have ended up in landfill.’’
Steer said the idea came about because the trust’s workload has halved now the Government is funding lunches in many schools.
Not all schools are part of the free lunch scheme, so the Kai Kitchen still provides nearly 60 lunches a week to nine schools. ‘‘We have to keep going for the kids. We couldn’t have left them, that would be too unfair. You can’t turn your back on them after six years,’’ she said.
But with half its workload gone, they needed to find another niche, she said.
‘‘We had to find a new path, there is still need in the community. We’re still doing school lunches, but we’re developing our role in other areas as well.’’
Volunteers are also making kai packs, kitset packaged dinners, which are available to anyone in need in Taranaki.
‘‘Each package has three meals for the family to cook, with everything they need to cook them, and the recipes are easy enough that a 10-year-old can cook them if they needed to.’’
Food not needed for school lunches and kai packs is being used to stock the new shop, she said. It will be open on Tuesdays from
11.30am-1pm and Thursdays from
4.30-6pm.