List of Community Food Aid & Food Banks in Australia
Are you looking for a way to give back to your community and help those in need? The demand for help with food and other groceries has reached an unprecedented level. In Australia, more than 2 million households went hungry just last year.
With the aftermath of the pandemic, the cost of living continuing to escalate and the impact of natural disasters, many families and individuals are struggling to make ends meet.
So, if you’re in the position to donate to a community food bank, now’s the time. To make things easier for you, we’ve collated a list of where you can find local community food banks by each Australian state. We’ve also included some handy tips and tricks on what you can and can’t donate, and the easiest way to get involved. Let’s get helping!
Food Aid & Food Banks in Australia By State
| Foodbank | State | How to Donate |
| Sydney Food Pantry | NSW | Drop your donations at 24 Wright St, Hurstville NSW 2220 or 2 Stanley St & Balmain Rd Leichhardt NSW 2040. https://www.sydneyfoodpantry.org/sydney-food-pantry |
| Addi Road Food Pantry | NSW | Drop off your food at Addi Road Food Pantry Building 1, Addison Road Community Centre, 142 Addison Road, Marrickville. https://addiroad.org.au/donate-food/ |
| The Rev Bill Crews Foundation | NSW | Donate online here https://www.billcrews.org/donate/ |
| Empower Australia | VIC | Cash donations online via this link or visit a centre closest to you. The main hub is 412 City Road Southbank VIC 3006, Sundays 9.30am – 1.00pm. https://www.empoweraustralia.com.au/get-involved/ |
| Mornington Community Support Centre | VIC | Visit https://www.mcsc.au/donate to see the different donation options. |
| Fareshare | VIC | Donate or volunteer here https://www.fareshare.net.au/donate-vic/ |
| FoodAssist Toowoomba | QLD | Visit https://www.foodassist.com.au/donate-food to see how you can get involved. |
| Angels Community Group | QLD | Goods can be dropped off at 45a Walla Street, Monday-Friday 8am-5:30pm and Saturday 9am-2pm. https://www.angelscommunitygroup.com/goods-donation |
| ADRA Community Centre | QLD | Visit https://www.adra.org.au/donate/ to donate. |
| Communities At Work | ACT | Donate food and other groceries to several drop-off points. Find your closest donation centre here https://www.commsatwork.org/get-involved/donate-essentials/ |
| Canberra City Care | ACT | You can make a financial contribution online at https://www.canberracitycare.org/donate.html |
| Gordon Community Centre | ACT | Donate online at https://www.anglicare.com.au/services/mission-community-engagement/survive-and-thrive/gordon/gordon-donations/ |
| Pathway Community Centre | SA | Donate online at https://pathway.clovie.com.au/ |
| Heart & Soul Group | SA | Donate here or organise a food drive fundraiser https://heartandsoulgroup.org/get-involved |
| Faithworks Centre | SA | Drop off your food donations to 5 Clifton Street, Blair Athol, 5084 South Australia. https://www.assist.net.au/food-individual.html |
| The Pantry WA | WA | Donate online at https://thepantrywa.com.au/ |
| Margaret Court Community Outreach | WA | Donate food or clothing and drop off at 14a Neil Street, Osborne Park WA 6017. Other locations found here: https://www.mcco.org.au/make-a-donation |
| Dreambuilders Care | WA | Donate online at https://www.dreambuilderscare.org.au/donate |
| Food Rescue | WA | Donate or volunteer https://unitingwa.org.au/get-involved/donate/ |
| Baptist Care NT Food For Life | NT | BCNT accepts cash donations at https://bcnt.org.au/donate-to-bcnt/ |
| ShelterMe | NT | Find out more here https://www.shelterme.org.au/ |
| Hobart City Mission | TAS | Donate goods, services or volunteer at https://hobartcitymission.org.au/donate-goods/ |
| Waterbridge Food Co-op | TAS | Visit https://www.waterbridgefood.com.au/ for more information. |
| Wyndarra Community & Resource Centre | TAS | Volunteer your time or donate https://www.wyndarra.org.au/services/ |
Australian-Wide Community Food Aid & Community Food Banks
1. Foodbank
Foodbank is one of the largest community food bank organisations in Australia, providing 88 million meals a year to more than 2,950 charities and 2,890 schools around the country. You can donate money, you can donate meals, and you can donate your time.
How to donate: Foodbank asks that you deliver your donations via mail or courier. You can find the state-based address by visiting the Foodbank website. You can also make a Woolworths or Coles online order and have it sent directly to the warehouse.
States they service: NSW, VIC, ACT, QLD, SA, WA, NT
https://www.foodbank.org.au/support-us/make-a-donation/?state=au
2. OzHarvest
If you are a registered business with good quality surplus food, OzHarvest will rescue it. If you’re an individual, OzHarvest accepts donations, with $25 delivering 50 meals to people in need. You can also help Ozharvest fulfil its mission by volunteering your time. OzHarvest will collect almost anything suitable for human consumption, as long as it’s food safe. Fruit and vegetables, meat, cooked meals and prepackaged vacuum items, dry goods, cakes and baked goods, drinks, dairy and eggs. OzHarvest does not collect shellfish or cooked rice due to health and safety regulations.
How to donate: Donate money online, or if you’re a registered business, you can fill out an online form and Ozharvest will contact you.
States they service: NSW, VIC, QLD, ACT, SA, WA
https://events.ozharvest.org/donate-to-ozharvest
3. SecondBite
SecondBite is a non-profit food bank that works in every state and territory in Australia. In 2011, Coles and SecondBite formed a national partnership, which led to a rapid expansion of the organisation’s operational scale and reach. SecondBite prefers to receive bulk food donations that meet its needs and specifications. If you have smaller, ad hoc donations, they recommend contacting a local charity to donate your stock. You can either drop the food off at one of SecondBite’s warehouses, or they’ll come to collect it from you.
How to donate: Fill in an online form detailing your donation and SecondBite will be in touch.
States they service: NSW, VIC, QLD, ACT, SA, WA
https://secondbite.org/donate-food/
What Are Community Food Banks?
In a nutshell, food banks are non-profits that gather and distribute food to help hunger-relief charities. They serve as storage and distribution centres for smaller agencies on the front line, rather than giving food directly to individuals in need.
How Do Community Food Banks Work?
Depending on the organisation, community food banks work in different ways. However, typically they involve donations from members of the public, restaurants, schools etc. and then forward that food collected/donated to Australians in need.
What Type of Food Can You Donate to Community Food Banks?
The type of food you can donate to community food banks will again depend on the organisation, and it also typically depends on what’s needed most, which will vary from time to time. Generally speaking, the types of food community food banks seek are non-perishable items, like pasta, rice, cereal, tinned goods, and packaged snacks. non-refrigerated drinks, coffee and so on. You can also donate things like toiletries and personal hygiene products.
| Things You Can Donate | Things You Can’t Donate |
|
|
How Can I Donate to My Local Community Food Bank?
There are several ways to donate to a community food bank. You can do it either by taking the food directly to the local food bank, or often you’ll find collection points in supermarkets across the country. With some community food banks, like the hunger relief charity Foodbank, you can actually make online Woolworths or Coles orders and send them directly to the charity.
Related Posts
