– Find Christmas meal inspiration with festive treats.–
Christmas and festive season should May it be a time of joy and celebration. But for many people, this can be an incredibly difficult time of year.
This is when gift giving often accounts for a large portion of people’s discretionary spending. Not the best news for charities, which have already been hit hard during the cost-of-living crisis. According to According to the University of Queensland, 78 percent of Australians have reduced their donations to charities.
But it’s also a time to give back – in fact, there are few better ways to get into the true spirit of Christmas than with charitable gifts.
Australia has no shortage of food-focused organisations. Whether you want to donate cash, give time or buy a Christmas gift, here are some great nonprofits you can get involved with.
This national not-for-profit organization – through 2400 other charities – is dedicated to tackling hunger by distributing food hampers (of non-perishable items) to disadvantaged Australians. In 2023, the Food Bank provided more than 81 million meals to people in need.
The organization also runs school meal clubs, which provide nutritious breakfasts and lunches to children who do not have access to them. Have some time left? You can join in packing food hampers with your family, friends or colleagues by signing up as an individual. Or, you could even help start a food club at your local school.
Getting kids involved in volunteering is a great way to teach them the importance of giving back. Credit: fstop123/Getty Images
Offering a similar service at a micro level, this community-led not-for-profit organization also provides food to those in need in Sydney’s inner west. In this all-volunteer operation, fresh food plus groceries are delivered twice a week. In addition, they also organize social cooking nights, school events and other community activities — all designed to help alleviate loneliness through food.
Volunteers can sign up to help cook or deliver food, and charitable donations are also welcome for poor times.
This Melbourne-based non-profit runs cooking classes run by refugees and asylum seekers. People can sign up for a class of their choice, where they will cook as a group while a cooking instructor shares insights and stories from their country.
There are currently 12 classes on rotation, including Ukrainian cooking with Oksana and Syrian cuisine with Baha. At the end of the class, attendees break bread and enjoy the dishes they helped cook. Just by attending the class, Fed teachers are supported for free through paid work and professional development opportunities. Gift vouchers for classes are also available.
If you’re looking for charity Christmas gift ideas, look no further than this social enterprise. Mattel is a gift delivery service that employs women survivors of domestic and family violence, helping them gain skills, confidence and financial security while providing safe and stable housing.
Employees have put together beautifully curated gift boxes – many of which are food-focused – filled with sustainable goods, which you can add to your loved ones’ shopping list. Options for foodies include a picnic box, a wine and nibble box and a gin gift box.
Combining technology with charity, this community-based app aggregates volunteering opportunities, with the goal of making it as easy as possible to give back. It asks people to create a profile including their interests and skills. Along with signing up for volunteer opportunities on the app, members can also make a general offer to help at any time.
Many of the charities on the platform are centered around food, such as Kids Giving Back, which runs programs that encourage young people to cook for those in need during the school holidays. The other is Pocket City Farms, an urban city farm in Sydney’s Camperdown, which supports adequate access to food in the region. People can volunteer to garden and learn about regenerative agriculture, waste reduction and water conservation techniques.
Charities on the app are currently focused on New South Wales but are expanding nationally.
Pocket City Farms, a non-profit that aims to address food insecurity, is one of the other charities available for volunteer opportunities on the app. Credit: Supply
This nonprofit collects fresh food from farmers, supermarkets, wholesalers, caterers and more sources across the country and redistributes it to community food programs that help disadvantaged people. It helps close the gap between people experiencing hunger and food waste, which is a huge problem in Australia.. Prioritizing nutrition and collecting fresh food, Second Bite is committed to ensuring that 75 percent of the food it collects is fruit and vegetables.
You can volunteer by collecting excess food from your local markets and/or donating food to local food programs. You can also donate to Second Bite, whose annual report says for every $1 donated, it saves up to five meals. And every dollar donated for Christmas will be doubled by the charity to help families in need.
