Bundaberg-based Gina's Table has earned the Gamechanger Award at the Hive Awards 2025 for its leadership in reducing food waste through value-added processing, diverting more than 252 tonnes of produce from landfill to date.
From surplus strawberries to international snacks, Gina’s Table is leading the way when it comes to addressing food waste. The company is an offshoot of Bundaberg’s SSS Strawberries that has created a high-impact model to transforms second-grade fruit – once deemed unmarketable – into nutritious, value-added products like freeze-dried powders, crumbles, and snacks.
Since launching, Gina’s Table has diverted over 250 tonnes of produce from landfill and is scaling rapidly. Its state-of-the-art 4000 square metre freeze-drying facility is equipped with GEA technology that was developed for NASA.
The project not only tackles food loss but provides year-round employment to seasonal farm workers and new revenue streams for farmers. In collaboration with End Food Waste Australia and the Queensland Department of Primary Industries, Gina’s Table is helping growers across multiple regions rethink what’s possible with rejected fruit.
The initiative now includes a growing export presence in the US and Vietnam and aims to expand into new regions with multiple facilities. Through innovation, collaboration and resourcefulness, Gina’s Table is proving that food waste can be a starting point for industry transformation, not just a challenge to be managed.
