Mounties Group’s Central Coast clubs have joined forces with OzHarvest, Australia’s leading food rescue organisation, to contribute to its Central Coast Food Rescue program – a crucial initiative aimed at diverting food waste into providing meals for those in need.
In a country where 7.6 million tonnes of food is wasted annually, and 3.7 million households grapple with food insecurity, OzHarvest is making a significant impact.
In the Central Coast region, OzHarvest rescues an average of 4.3 tonnes of high-quality, surplus food each week, diverting it from landfill to feed those in need.
A ClubGRANTS donation of $15,000 from Club Wyong, Breakers and Halekulani Bowling Club has been given to OzHarvest to ensure the program can continue to thrive and will directly support the rescue and delivery of 30,000 meals for locals.
“The OzHarvest Central Coast Food Rescue program sees food delivered, free of charge, to 57 local charities, helping put 8,663 meals on the tables of vulnerable households every week,” Mounties Group President John Dean said.
OzHarvest’s Central Coast program has witnessed remarkable growth in response to increased demand since it started in 2020.
Evolving from one van in 2021, it now operates two vans four days a week, servicing 10 suburbs in the south of the region from Woy Woy to Somersby, and 15 in the north from Bateau Bay to Lake Macquarie.
“We started on the Coast in urgent response to the devastating food insecurity caused by COVID-19,” OzHarvest NSW Manager Richard Watson said.
“Three years on, families and vulnerable households are still struggling – with housing affordability, unemployment and rising costs of living.
“Without OzHarvest’s stable supply of nutritious food, an estimated 9,150 vulnerable community members would simply go without.”
Dean said the Mounties Group grant was not just a financial contribution, but an investment in the wellbeing of the community.
“By supporting OzHarvest, we believe in the power of collective action to alleviate hunger, strengthen community bonds with local charities, and build a sustainable future for generations to come,” he said.
The grant will directly ensure OzHarvest’s Central Coast Food Rescue program can continue turning its wheels and supporting vulnerable locals.
For more information on OzHarvest visit www.ozharvest.org