“That prompted us to jump right in, we made contact with Just Ziltch in Palmerston North (they’ve been going for 13 years) rescuing tonnes of food every year and giving to organisations like Unity Food, all over the region to Hawera and Stratford, down to Levin. They provide the whole region, all those small organisations, so they can give out food.
“One focus is to ensure that perfectly good food doesn’t go to waste. We work with supermarkets, bakeries, and anyone who’s got anything left over.
“We get good co-operation in Whanganui. Unity Food is part of the Whanganui Food Security Co-operative. We work closely with City Mission, Te Ora Hou - which runs Stone Soup - another food initiative.
“We are working with the Anglican Church at Christ Church in Wicksteed St, Heritage Food Research Food Crop Trust, the Kai Hub, and Whanganui Community Education Services.
“We collaborate and co-operate with a lot of other organisations, we have some really strong supporters in the community such as Savages Bakery, Whanganui Produce Centre, Whanganui East Four Square and Murray’s Emporium (shoes, socks). We pass on other things than food and people are very grateful, especially in winter for warm clothes,” she said.
The free supermarket was established in October 2021. It originally operated out of Whanganui East, then moved to Wicksteed St last year. It’s a central location with access to the church foyer, so people don’t have to wait outside.
“It’s warm in winter, we can offer tea and coffee and a pie for lunch. It’s not only about giving out food, it’s about building a thriving community,” said Zulkifli.
“A lot of people are struggling with feeling isolated, a lot of elderly are lonely, there is a nice established group that comes most weeks for social interaction.
“Seeing our community develop, people coming to hang out. Some wait for three hours until we open. They bring a book, they have a cup of tea, it’s lovely to see,” she said.
There is a core team of 15 regular volunteers, which is building. Time and effort go into getting the food, plus administration work logistics are involved. Unity Food is open for one hour a week on Fridays from 3pm-4pm.
“It has improved my respect and appreciation of supermarkets due to the sheer amount of work and logistics involved in having a supermarket stocked around the clock, it’s an amazing thing - customers don’t see that.
“In Whanganui, people will drop us off a bag of potatoes. A lovely woman who’s a great gardener has been dropping off vegetables and fruit she has been growing in her garden. A lot of people, if they have something, they will bring it in. It takes a community to make this work.
“Our focus is on providing food for the weekend - two to three days, with breakfast ingredients, something for making meals and sometimes we have a treat as well. People shouldn’t have to worry about what are they feeding their kids on Sunday morning,” she said.
“Anyone wanting to contribute food, contact Unity Food through their Facebook page or come down on Friday and drop something off between 12pm-3pm at Christ Church, lower Community Hall.”
There are between 150-200 people catered for every week. Not everyone comes every week, some only come when they have a tough week.
Numbers are up over the past few months, said Zulkifli.
“We also drop food off on Saturday to the homeless on Anzac Parade and Taupō Quay - sandwiches and perishables we can’t keep for the next week.”
Sonny Barlow’s contribution
“Sonny Barlow was the visionary behind Unity Food. He was such a generous person, he always made sure everyone was well-fed. He loved cooking, and he was a very family-orientated person. Food was always the first thing on his mind.
“After his passing, I spoke to his grandmother. She said Sonny was only 10 years old when he asked his koro, who he was named after, ‘What makes a good chief?’ He said ‘A good chief makes sure that the people are well fed.’ That stuck with him always. That was his inspiration and we worked very hard to establish the charity. We put a lot of heart into it.
“It was clear we would continue Unity Food as his legacy,” she said.
