Groundbreaking Merger for SecondBite and FareShare

13 May, 2024

In a transformative and sustainable move for the food rescue and relief sector, SecondBite and FareShare have announced they will merge from July 1, 2024.

This major advancement will combine the incredible community-led culture of FareShare with the national scale and heartfelt reach of SecondBite, enabling a single solution for providing free, nutritious food to communities who need it most.

Founded in 2001, FareShare operates Australia’s largest non-profit kitchens in Melbourne and Brisbane, where chefs transform rescued and donated food, as well as produce grown on their own farms, into millions of delicious, nutritious meals for people in need.

These meals are given away free to frontline charities, such as soup vans, homeless shelters, women’s refuges, First Nations organisations and groups providing dignified food relief and providing the right meals to people most in need. 

Founded in 2005, SecondBite was borne out of a realisation that perfectly healthy, edible food was being discarded and farmers and retailers, while millions of people faced hunger through food insecurity.

With operations in every state and territory, SecondBite works with farmers, retailers and manufacturers to harness surplus quality produce, providing it to more than 1000 charity partners supporting their communities experiencing food insecurity.

Food insecurity impacts the quality of life and the prospects of millions of Australians, with many people experiencing complex challenges. Despite the sustained efforts of many volunteers, charities, businesses and governments, food insecurity in our country continues to rise. 

SecondBite and FareShare have long recognised the complementary nature of each organisation; realising that working together enables increased support to those in the community who need it most.

The merger is a timely and logical next step for the two organisations, after many years of collaboration at Board, executive and operational levels – including a longstanding commitment by SecondBite to supply ingredients with which FareShare cooks meals for SecondBite to distribute through its network.

Daniel Moorfield, CEO, said “We will have the ability to reduce the number of food insecure Australians, enabling them to achieve improved physical and mental wellbeing, and be best placed to reach their potential.”

“By combining each organisation’s strengths it will enable growth and the ability to support communities in need, resulting in a greater supply of food, as well as a more tailored approach, where the need is greatest.”

FAQs

Why are SecondBite and FareShare merging?

SecondBite and FareShare have long recognised the complementary nature of each organisation; realising working together enables increased support to those in the community who need it most.

By combining the incredible community-led culture of FareShare with the national scale and heartfelt reach of SecondBite, we will create a transformative, all-encompassing solution for providing nutritious food to communities who need it most.

What is the new organisation’s vision/purpose?

Vision: Every Australian has access to nutritious food – no matter their location or situation
Purpose: We partner with communities to provide free, healthy food and nutritious cooked meals that help Australians thrive

What are the benefits of merging?

There are many, significant benefits to be realised from a merged entity, including:

• A greater volume of food – and a greater diversity of food options – will be able to be provided to communities through economies of scale and supply chain optimisation
• A combined entity would be able to provide a greater distribution of culturally-appropriate, healthy food and meals to areas that are geographically isolated, have greater need or are currently not being serviced
• The new entity would focus on the creation of a needs-led system of food relief that currently does not exist in Australia, with communities able to have their nutritional and cultural needs catered for, including a medically tailored program currently being piloted by FareShare
• A merged entity would be able to better advocate for effective food relief, and better represent the voice of communities who need it.

What will the merged organisation be called?

At a Board level and organisation level, the combined entity will be called SecondBite and will have equal representation from the SecondBite and FareShare Board, as well as co-chairs from both boards. Within the organisation we will still consist of two brands: FareShare mobilising volunteers to cook tens of thousands of meals a week in its Melbourne and Brisbane kitchens and SecondBite collecting donations of surplus food from farms, supermarkets and businesses to meet the needs of frontline services and stopping quality food going to waste

Who will be the CEO of the new entity?

By mutual agreement, Daniel Moorfield (SecondBite) will become Chief Executive Officer of the new entity.

What will happen to the Boards of FareShare and SecondBite?

The current FareShare Board Chair, David Harris and SecondBite Board Chair, Joel Mahemoff, will be appointed Co-Chairs of the new entity. A transitional Board will be appointed from August 1, consisting of four members of the current FareShare Board and four members of the SecondBite Board, plus one Coles’ appointed Board Director.

Following these appointments, a Board skills and diversity matrix will be developed to ensure the newly appointed Board possesses the governance expertise and skills required to lead the entity towards ongoing sustainability.

How will it affect Volunteers?

Volunteers are critical to the success of the new entity, and a valued part of our community. There will be no change to volunteering programs in the short term. Longer term, we will look to ensure we have volunteer support in the areas of the organisation that need it most.

How will it affect Corporate Partners and Donors?
Current corporate partners, philanthropic partners, individual donors for both SecondBite and FareShare will continue to be aligned with the organisation and projects, with which they currently partner. The relevant team will communicate merger information to them in a thorough, timely manner.  

How will it affect SecondBite’s relationship with Coles?

Coles is supportive of, and excited about, the merger. It has been factored into the next five-year agreement which has been agreed upon by both SecondBite and Coles.

How will it affect FareShare’s relationship with Woolworths?

Woolworths is supportive of, and excited about, the merger, and will continue to provide FareShare with both rescued food, and funds.

How will it affect other Food Donors?

Food donors will continue to donate to either FareShare or SecondBite for the time being.

How will it affect Charity Partners?

Charity Partners will continue to receive food from either FareShare or SecondBite. We believe that a combined entity would be able to provide a greater distribution of culturally-specific, healthy food and meals to areas that are geographically isolated, have greater need or are currently not being serviced. The relevant team will communicate merger information to them in a thorough, timely manner. 

How will it affect programs such as FareShare’s Meals for the Mob or SecondBite’s Feed the Future program?

All programs associated with each organisation will remain as they are for the foreseeable future. The new combined organisation will retain a commitment to the existing programs and cohorts they support and will look to expand upon these, not reduce them.

FareShare has a strong commitment to supporting First Nations communities, including having developed a Reconciliation Action Plan (RAP). How will the merger affect this RAP?

There will be no changes to the FareShare RAP. SecondBite will take learnings from the RAP that FareShare currently has in place and will look to implement its own RAP in the future.

What will happen to both organisation’s assets ie. warehouses and office buildings?

There will be no change to building assets in the short term. However, longer term, we will look to review the entire suite of assets to ensure we are operating in a manner that is efficient and has the greatest impact. There may be some consolidation of assets, but expansion is also likely, particularly in states where FareShare does not currently operate.