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Foodbank Victorias second mobile supermarket hits the road

Foodbank Victoria’s second mobile supermarket – fitted out on a bus – visited Melbourne’s north-west in its first week on the road as part of a new initiative which has already reached over 1650 families since the first bus was launched in December.

The 18-metre ex-SkyBus articulated bus is designed to offer a miniature supermarket experience. With entry at the back and exit at the front, the vehicles have purpose-built shelving and refrigeration stocked with a range of fresh produce, pantry and staple items.   

Each bus has the capacity to stock approximately 600 kilograms of fresh produce including fruit and vegetables, 150 kilograms of chilled items, 100 kilograms of frozen goods, and 1000 kilograms of pantry staples like rice, pasta and legumes. 

The program is expected to visit up to six locations every week as it matures, with Foodbank Victoria partnering with its network of agencies to support its growth. 

Foodbank Victoria CEO Dave McNamara says the mobile supermarket buses allow struggling Victorians to access healthy food.   

“This is all about supporting people who are doing it tough and simply don’t know how they are going to find the next meal for their families or themselves,” McNamara said.   

“This is a concept we first discussed with SkyBus in 2020, allowing us to visit people who often don’t have the capacity to travel or who aren’t receiving food relief in the traditional ways. 

It also allows us to provide a truly bespoke food relief service to the emerging culturally and linguistically diverse communities around metro Melbourne.

The bus can stock 600 kilograms of fresh produce, 150 kilograms of chilled items, 100 kilograms of frozen goods, and 1000 kilograms of pantry staples.

 

“The first bus has had such a phenomenal response from both the charity agencies we partner with and those who’ve come to experience the joy and dignity of ‘shopping’ for groceries and fresh produce that’s all provided for free. To now have two of them on the road is simply brilliant.” 

The vehicles have been donated by Kinetic, with bus manufacturer Volgren playing a key role in the transformation along with Transcal and Avery Dennison who branded the vehicles.   

This is the second foodbank bus donated by Kinetic as reported in December last year by ABC. 

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