Coles and food rescue service SecondBite seeking donations of $2 to feed Port Stephens families

Coles supermarkets at Medowie, Salamander Bay and Tanilba Bay are taking part in a promotion to raise money for SecondBite, a national charity that redistributes surplus fresh food to families in need.

SecondBite donation cards are available to buy for $2 from Coles checkouts until August 2.

Money raised through the sale of the cards will be used to boost SecondBite’s work not only in Port Stephens but across NSW.

This work includes delivering surplus fresh fruit and vegetables to support agencies in Port Stephens that provide meals to people in need.

Port Stephens Family and Neighbourhood Service receives surplus supermarket stock from SecondBite every week to help its food welfare clients.

The Medowie Assembly of God, a partner of Coles at Medowie, receives surplus stock for its Food Way program through SecondBite Community Connect – the organisation’s food rescue model for rural areas.

“Too many people in our communities don’t have enough food to eat and are not able to afford healthy meals on a daily basis,” Coles’ state general manager, Thinus Keeve, said.

“We hope that through our surplus fresh food donations and the support from our local customers, we can make a real difference to people doing it tough this winter.”

SecondBite chief executive officer Jim Mullan said the organisation has partnered with Coles since November 2011 to rescue surplus fresh, nutritious food for people in need.

“By working together, SecondBite and Coles are providing enough fresh food for more than 23,000 nutritious meals every single day to children and families doing it tough across Australia,” Mr Mullan said.

Fruit, vegetables, meat and bakery items that do not meet Coles’ in-store quality standards, but which are still safe and nutritious to eat, are donated.

In the past five years, Coles has donated the equivalent of 30 million meals to Australian families.

Also read: Food relief for Bay families