The Aotearoa Food Rescue Alliance (AFRA) is calling on the Government to include mandatory food rescue partnerships in its plans to reform New Zealand’s grocery sector.
In response to the announcement from Economic Growth Minister Nicola Willis about potential structural separation in the supermarket sector, AFRA says now is the time to ensure that food businesses are not just more competitive, but more responsible.
“If we’re going to rewrite the rules for supermarkets, let’s make sure those rules reflect the values of fairness, sustainability, and community,” said Iain Lees-Galloway, General Manager of AFRA. “Every major food retailer and supplier should be required to have a food rescue partner and to contribute to the cost of rescuing surplus food. Food rescue ensures that any food a supermarket will no longer sell, but is still perfectly good to eat, is distributed to those who need it, rather than ending up in landfill.”
AFRA is a national alliance representing 36 food rescue organisations across Aotearoa. In the year to July 2024, its members collectively rescued 7.1 million kilograms of food—the equivalent of over 15 million meals—and redistributed it to communities in need.
Despite their impact, food rescue organisations receive limited direct support from the businesses that generate surplus food.
“Food rescue creates a triple win: it feeds people, reduces waste, and cuts emissions,” said Lees-Galloway. “We’ve shown it works—but it’s time for the food businesses to step up. They should be required to partner with and fund food rescue as a core part of their social and environmental responsibility.”
A 2022 social return on investment study found that for every $1 invested in food rescue, $4.50 of social value is created. AFRA believes this return makes a compelling case for embedding food rescue into the future of New Zealand’s food system.
AFRA is urging the Government to consider the food sector’s broader role in delivering public good, and to make food rescue a regulatory requirement in any new framework for grocery market competition.
