It’s 9am on a stifling 35-degree morning in Yarrawonga, Darwin, and the doors of Foodbank’s new Food Hub have just opened for the day.

Local families and residents – at least 250 people every week – steadily stream through the doors and are warmly greeted by the Regional Manager, Jack Barrett, as well as team members and volunteers, who’ve been tirelessly re-stocking the shelves and baskets preparing for yet another busy day.

Since opening the Food Hub and Warehouse operation in January to assist the growing number of families in the region experiencing food insecurity, Jack says Foodbank, one of Woolworths Group’s long-time food relief partners, has already far exceeded the initial distribution targets in the Northern Territory.

“The number of clients accessing the Food Hub has increased significantly since operations commenced in January,” says Jack. “We are now supporting hundreds of families every week and the demand is growing.”

The newly expanded site has both a large warehouse at the back, which provides support to 40 agencies and community groups, and more than 30 school programs. At the front is the street-facing, dedicated Food Hub, which provides food relief directly to those in need in the Darwin community.

As well as being one of Foodbank’s largest food donors, Woolworths Group also provides regular pro bono freight support from South Australia into the NT through its Primary Connect supply chain arm.
 

This support has allowed Jack and his team to distribute more than 342,980kg of food relief in just eight months of operation.

“This has been enough to put more than 685,000 meals on the table,” says Jack. 

“We are expecting to provide enough for 900,000 meals for those in need this calendar year. More than 30 per cent of this distribution is fresh fruit and vegetables completely free to our community.”

It is here at the Food Hub that local families struggling to put food on the table can access free fruit, vegetables and bread, and other low-cost groceries.

The Food Hub works on a referral basis and only those in genuine need can access it. 

The Hub is set up like a supermarket, providing a dignified and positive experience for customers, who greet the volunteers warmly and chat with other visitors. Children trail behind their parents’ trolleys as they peruse the aisles just like any other supermarket.

“We see hard-working families experiencing this sector for the first time as a result of the rising cost of bills and mortgage or rental pressures,” he says. “These parents are unable to feed their kids and are skipping multiple meals or going entire days without food.
 

“We are also proud to be able to support our First Nations families in our community. Many families love the welcoming environment. There is no shame, no judgement and culturally appropriate food.

“Over the last few months, being able to support our families during Sorry Business has been imperative.”

Jack says the new Food Hub is not only a lifeline for their customers but has also become the beating heart of the tight-knit community.

“What's so special about this site is that we started to build a little community, which is really nice to see,” he says. “The same clients come in week after week and they get to catch up with people they now call friends.

“This is a lifeline for these people. So many would not be able to eat without this site, so to know that we are helping families in my community brings me so much pride.”

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