Two incomes are no longer enough for some families in the south west to keep their fridge full, according to Geelong Food Share.
What’s that? Geelong Food Share is a not-for-profit organisation that works to provide healthy food to residents across Geelong and western Victoria who might not otherwise have access to it.
The organisation rescued more than 174,000 kilograms of food in 2025, which made up about 2.9 million meals, feeding 20,000 people every week.
Current landscape: Head of impact Felicia Bell told the Brolga demand for Geelong Food Share’s services has climbed significantly in the Colac Otway, Golden Plains and Warrnambool areas and about 70 percent of people turning to food shares have never had to before.
She said in Colac Otway alone, the organisation’s deliveries rose by about 220 percent since Covid.
“Food insecurity [in Colac Otway] is pretty much double that of the state. Nearly 14.5 percent of people are facing severe food insecurity in the Colac Otway region versus the state average of eight percent,” Bell said.
She cited loss of employment and domestic violence as common drivers for newcomers to food share agencies.
“The divide is getting greater as well because people out in regional areas don't have access to healthy food choices. They have to travel a lot more distance to be able to get a healthy food stop versus an unhealthy food stop.”
Big logistics: Food is collected daily by Geelong Food Share from about 35 businesses who donate produce such as Woolworths, Coles and Aldi. It is then distributed by six refrigerated vehicles to more than 80 different agencies from Lara to Warrnambool, such as Warrnambool Food Share or Colac Kindness Network.
Bell said the problem with food insecurity isn’t a scarcity problem, it’s a logistical problem.
“We dump 7.6 million tonnes of food every year … but we actually produce enough food for 90 million people. So the big issue is only 0.2 percent of food that's wasted is rescued by agencies like ours,” she said.
“Sometimes the tricky thing is connecting with cold chain logistics, so it's easier for them to just create the waste instead of contacting an agency like ours.”
How to help: Bell encouraged local producers to get in touch if they were interested in supplying some of their produce for meals - other volunteers are also welcomed.
“Volunteering is amazing, doing food drives at your local school, we're always looking for non-perishable items like tinned spaghetti, or donate extra produce if you've got some,” she said.
People interested in more information can go to their website.
Header image: Geelong Food Share