WHO ARE WE?
We are Food Rescue Aoraki.
At Food Rescue Aoraki, we’re proud to be the only dedicated food rescue service operating across Mid and South Canterbury. From our base in Timaru, we work tirelessly to reduce food waste and support local communities by supplying free, quality food to those who need it most.
We currently provide rescued food to 16 community organisations in Timaru — many of which would not have access to this food without our service. By bridging the gap between surplus food and local people in need, we help ensure good food doesn’t go to waste.
Our passionate team includes three part-time staff (equivalent to fewer than two full-time roles) and nine amazing volunteers. Together, we operate in Timaru three days a week, and travel to Ashburton twice a week to serve that community as well.
OUR BACKGROUND
Until December 2023, we operated under the name Foodbank Aotearoa, rescuing surplus food from supermarkets and distributors across the region since 2018. However, when our Christchurch office withdrew funding, we faced closure — which would have left Timaru without a dedicated food rescue service.
Determined to continue supporting our community, we rose to the challenge. Thanks to the incredible generosity of a local benefactor who donated $30,000, we were able to reopen our doors in January 2024 and resume delivering rescued food to community organisations throughout Timaru and Mid Canterbury. This critical support helped cover our costs while we sought more sustainable funding.
At that time, we weren’t yet a formal trust. To ensure we could legally receive and manage funds, we partnered with Safer Mid Canterbury Trust, who stepped in as our umbrella organisation. They’ve provided invaluable mentoring, assisted with funding applications, and supported us with administrative guidance.
We’re now taking the next big step by establishing our own Food Rescue Trust, led by four dedicated local trustees, to secure and grow food rescue services for our community well into the future.
OUR GOALS
• We strive to create the widest reach possible in our community, empower and encourage our Community Organisations to use our donation wisely.
• We need to increase sourcing of free food and take advantage of every opportunity available to us to rescue Food.
• Use our resources, both financial and donated wisely. Reduce our community landfill.
• Continue and increase our Funding Providers.
WHAT WE DO
At Food Rescue Aoraki, we build strong partnerships with supermarkets, retailers, distributors, greengrocers, farmers, and food manufacturers to ensure a steady supply of free, quality food. These relationships are vital to sustaining our food rescue operations across Timaru and Mid Canterbury.
We also actively connect with community organisations that run food banks or distribute food parcels, so together we can reach people who need it most.
Each week, we collect surplus food from our partners three days in Timaru and two days in Ashburton. This food is carefully transported in our refrigerated van to meet all health and safety standards, and stored in warehouses equipped with refrigeration and freezer capacity as required by our providers.
Before distribution, every item is checked for packaging integrity, expiry dates, and freshness. Once sorted, the rescued food is allocated to our network of community organisations, who pick up these supplies and prepare food parcels for families and individuals in their own communities.
ACCOUNTABILITY
We see Food Rescue Aoraki as a provider of Rescued Food and Donator into the Community.
We do not act as a Foodbank and supply individuals. However, with our ongoing Relationships with our Community Organisation that we support, we encourage food to be directed into the Community wisely. We are careful with our selection of Community Organisations and work with those who reach those most in need.
With the help these Organisations we are potentially reaching out to 2,500. people per week.
Whether that be one community meal, delivery of free meals to infirmed or elderly, a food box to a family struggling financially or a student who comes to school with no food.
