Meal kit delivery company HelloFresh has donated $200,000 to food rescue organisation OzHarvest to help feed people in need and reduce food waste this Christmas.
This year, HelloFresh became the first meal-kit delivery service to allow its customers to donate to OzHarvest within its app, via an add-on function built into the weekly menu.
Since the launch of the donation function, HelloFresh customers in Australia have raised $90,000, with the company committing an additional $110,000 to be donated to OzHarvest.
HelloFresh Australia CEO Tom Rutledge said this latest donation would help OzHarvest’s model whereby every $1 donated provides two meals to people in need.
“This year, we’ve been very pleased by the generosity of our customers, who have rallied together to raise this significant, community-led contribution. As always, we’re very proud to partner with OzHarvest and recognise their tremendous work in rescuing food and delivering meals to people in need, especially at this time of the year,” Rutledge said.
OzHarvest founder and CEO Ronni Kahn said support from businesses like Hello Fresh were vital.
“There are still so many families struggling to put food on the table and Christmas is always an extremely challenging time of year,” Kahn said.
Rutledge said HelloFresh was also committed to sustainability and reducing food waste.
“It makes up a fundamental component of the company’s operations. In 2020, HelloFresh became the first global carbon neutral meal kit company and has also committed to meeting the APCO 2025 National Packaging Targets across ANZ,” he said.
The meal-kit leader’s sourcing, packaging and delivery operations generate less food waste than traditional food retailers, while customers who prepare HelloFresh meals at home discard less food while cooking and serving.
Its latest donation to OzHarvest will help save 200,000 kilograms of food destined for landfill and prevent 1.3 million kilograms of greenhouse emissions through avoiding food waste.
