Kai Conscious Waiheke
Kia ora Waiheke whanau
We’re finally liberated from Level 4 lockdown, but there are still several weeks of Alert Levels 3 and 2 ahead of us. As Waihekeans navigate through this COVID-19 situation together, we are all affected in different ways.
Jobs have been lost, sources of income have dried up, and some of the island’s most vulnerable community members are struggling to feed themselves and their families.
During this time, WRT’s Kai Conscious project is continuing to work with our food rescue partners – the key food suppliers on Waiheke – as well as with Waiheke Budgeting Services and Living Waters, to ensure much-needed food is reaching those in need. We expect this need to continue and probably increase over time as we work through the changes and challenges that the next phases of COVID-19 will bring to the island. However, as some food outlets remain closed, the amount of food available for WRT to redistribute has been reduced.
Are you in a position to help?
Kai Conscious is seeking donations to purchase essential food items for our most vulnerable community members. We invite you to contribute to our fundraising efforts: all donated funds will go into food purchase and distribution.
Not able to support financially?
We welcome gifts of homegrown fruit and vegetables too! You can also help by sharing this information amongst your networks.
Though we are physically distancing, we are still able to connect, show kindness, and share our love for our community. Together, we can make sure that everyone’s kete has enough, and support our community to thrive.
Volunteer for Kai Conscious or donate today!
A community development project managed by Waiheke Resources Trust & funded by Auckland Council.
Kai Conscious Waiheke (KCW) engages households in activities and events aimed to support sustainability through food waste reduction and composting.
The successful KCW pilot began in 2013 and saw 220 Blackpool households received the Kai Conscious tool kit & over forty people attended free composting workshops.
The project then moved to Rocky Bay, Oneroa, Surfdale, and to Mawhitipana (Palm Beach) in 2017.
With a focus on food and connecting communities KCW supported the Blackpool & Surfdale communities to create their own "pop up pubs", where neighbours would meet monthly and share kai.
Being Kai Conscious means taking actions like measuring food waste, meal and shopping planning, portioning, and storing food correctly to reduce the amount of food waste you produce, save you money and reduce environmental impacts.
Kai Conscious Tool Kit
Kai Conscious participants receive a free tool kit to help them evaluate there household food waste. The kit comes with a handy bench top food waste container, meal planner, progress tracker & other helpful resources.
Our Progress Tacker is available for download here. By printing out the form and filling it in each time you empty your benchtop container, you will get a sense of how much food waste you are producing and can track any changes that you are making.
In Aotearoa 122,547 tons of food are thrown away annually.
Putting Food Waste in the Spotlight
The problem with waste is that our solution is often to throw it away. ‘Out of sight, out of mind’ goes the saying.
This means we often don’t consider all the consequences of our actions, and it also removes some key feedback loops that would otherwise effect our behavior. Becoming aware of the problem is the first step in finding a solution.
That’s why making food waste visible is so important.
There are a number of ways to do this and the KCW toolkit provides you with at least three of these tools - the progress chart, the fridge magnet and the benchtop container to collect your waste in.
Over time, as you become more and more aware of the food waste your household is producing, and as you start putting more food waste reduction skills into practice the amount of food waste you produce will get smaller and smaller.
Why do we waste food?
- Are you throwing away leftovers that went bad?
- Are the plates empty after a meal, or is there always uneaten food left on them?
- Are you throwing away food that’s going stale - bread, chips, crackers and cereals?
- Are you throwing away expired food?
Love your leftovers!
Leftovers can save you money, time & they taste great.
Taking leftovers for lunch, reheating them or storing them can save you loads of money and time & some foods taste better the second time around! Tip: If they weren't so great the first time add some flavour or create a whole new dish.
Visit Love Food Hate Waste for recipe ideas or google leftover recipes ideas.
On average we throw away one third of what we buy.
If you spend $200 per week on food:
Waste 30% less = save $4680 a year
Waste 20% less = save $3120 a year
Waste 10% less = save $1560 a year
If you spend $100 per week on food:
Waste 30% less = save $1560 a year
Waste 20% less = save $1040 a year
Waste 10% less = save $520 a year
Join us in 2019 to get Kai Conscious!
