Coles has donated an entire truckload of fresh produce to SecondBite in Western Australia after flooding prevented the load being delivered to the Broome and Kununurra stores.
The donation included 300kg of bananas, 240 punnets of strawberries, 85kg of truss tomatoes, 80kg of nectarines and 90 iceberg lettuces. Other produce donated included melons, apples, pears, pineapples, broccoli, capsicums, onions, carrots, herb punnets and pre-packaged salads and veggie pots.
The truck was en route to Kununurra (WA) late last week when it was turned around by authorities due to road closures caused by recent storms. While Coles was able to supply food to Broome (WA) and Kununurra customers by airlifting 12 tonnes of fresh produce and milk on Saturday, the produce in the truck was returned to a Perth distribution centre.
“Coles is proud to partner with SecondBite to help provide nutritious meals to those in need and reduce waste from our supermarkets,” West Australia State Manager Pat Zanetti said.
“When this delivery of fresh produce was unable to reach its intended destination, we wanted to make sure it could still be used in a meaningful way, and we’re thrilled to contribute to the great work SecondBite does in our local communities.”
SecondBite CEO Jim Mullan says the donation will allow SecondBite to provide 7,400 meals.
“With 125 community food programs supported in and around Perth by our partner, Food Rescue, the extra food collected will have significant impact,” he said.
The Coles Community Food with SecondBite program has donated more than 25 million kilograms of fresh food to disadvantaged Australians since it launched in late 2011, which is an equivalent of more than 50 million nutritious meals.