Food charities merge in bid to tackle growing hunger crisis

The merger between SecondBite and FareShare will come into effect from July 1.

The announcement comes as food relief charities face unprecedented demand from Australians hit hard by the cost-of-living crisis.

Research by SecondBite found almost half (48%) of all Australians have skipped at least one meal a week because of financial pressure.

With food insecurity growing across the country, SecondBite CEO Daniel Moorfield said the need for organisations operating in the food rescue and relief sector to work together to address these challenges was greater than ever.

“Combining the incredible community-led culture of FareShare with the national scale and heartfelt reach of SecondBite will enable a single solution for providing free, nutritious food to communities who need it most,” said Mr Moorfield.

“It will enable growth, resulting in a greater supply of food, as well as a more tailored approach where the need is greatest.”

The merger received support from supermarket giants Coles and Woolworths, who are major food and financial donors to both food relief charities.

Mr Moorfield said the merger was a timely and logical next step for the two organisations after many years of collaboration at the board, executive and operational levels.

This collaboration included a longstanding commitment by SecondBite to supply ingredients with which FareShare cooks meals for SecondBite to distribute through its network.

“FareShare and SecondBite have long recognised the complementary nature of each organisation, realising that working together enables increased support to those in the community who need it most,” said Mr Moorfield.

“I am excited to see what the future holds for the food rescue and relief sector and our fellow sector partners as we continue to collaborate through advocacy, innovation and transformation, responding to the ever-increasing need and changes in the complexity of issues.”

FareShare’s vice board chair, Sandy Dudakov OAM, said the merger would transform the sector, with FareShare meals soon able to be distributed nationally in the community via SecondBite’s existing network.

“Frontline agencies will have the convenience of a single delivery providing SecondBite food and FareShare meals,” said Ms Dudakov.

“Our reach will be wider and our ability to provide more nutritious meals to many more people will be vastly improved.

“My hope is that this merger will inspire even greater collaboration between all members of the food relief sector.”

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