Mobile van to ferry in food you can bank on

Residents in Waroona will no longer need to travel far to get their hands on fresh produce thanks to a mobile food van initiative from Food Bank.

The not-for-profit organisation will bring its mobile food van to the Waroona Community Resource Centre once a month.

With only one IGA Supermarket in town, and the closest chain grocery store being more than 50km away, for many residents grocery shopping can be tough.

“One of the biggest issues we face in Waroona is isolation,” centre officer Sarah Robertson said.

“That, plus the lack of public transport, especially affordable public transport and the fact that a lot of people don’t have a vehicle or the means to travel to Mandurah for food and necessities, has been a problem for some time.”

After visiting Foodbank in Mandurah to pick up soup for the Waroona soup kitchen, Ms Robertson mentioned these issues to the Food Bank Peel branch manager, Megan Reynolds.

“Megan is really passionate about making sure that Foodbank is accessible to everyone in her region,” Ms Robertson said.

“When she told me about the mobile food bank project I asked if we could have it in Waroona and she said absolutely.”

Once a month, residents will have the opportunity to access Food Bank and buy food hampers that include fresh fruit, vegetables and pantry staples.

“We are really excited about it, it’s going to help so many individuals, families and pensioners,” Ms Robertson said.