NSW Environmental Protection Agency NSW Government
 

Donating food: feeding people, not landfill

Many businesses in NSW are already donating food. Bakery items leftover at the end of the day, food past its best before date that’s still good to eat or leftover, unused catering or cafe meals are all perfect for donating.

NSW wastes 1.7 million tonnes of food every year and around 70% of it is edible. That’s almost 600,000 meals going to waste.

With more than 100,000 people in NSW going hungry each month, now is the time to start donating food. Join hundreds of other businesses, like supermarkets, cafes, bakeries and farmers’ markets that already donate food rather than throw it away.

There are 3 key parts to donating food:

  1. Donations: charities need more food donors and volunteers to keep up with demand
  2. Rescue: collection and distribution of donated food
  3. Relief: rescued food provided to the community as meals and hampers etc.

Becoming a food donor

Does your organisation have excess food? Watch our video on why donation is a great fit for food that has reached its ‘best before’ date or when too much food was ordered or prepared. 

Why donate food?

Donating food has:

  • financial benefit – save on waste fees by keeping edible food out of the bin
  • social benefit – opportunity to give back to your local community
  • environmental benefit – reduce your emissions, every tonne of food saved is equivalent to saving 2.1 tonnes of CO2.

With 1 in 3 households in NSW and the ACT going hungry, donating food is a great way to give back to your community. The Foodbank Hunger Report explains that single-parent households are the hardest hit, with 41% regularly skipping meals or going a full day without food.

New food waste requirements in NSW

From 1 July 2026, businesses and institutions that sell or handle food, like supermarkets, cafes, schools and hotels must separate food waste from general waste to divert it from landfill and reduce emissions. Scaling up food waste recycling also takes us closer to a circular economy where resources are recycled and repurposed. 

Food waste is collected in separate bins and picked up weekly for processing into new products like compost and soil conditioners. 

Find out if and when your business needs to source separate.

Supermarkets must keep food donation records

From 1 July 2026, all large supermarkets operating in NSW must also record their monthly food donations. Large supermarkets include any supermarket or customer fulfilment centre with at least 1,000m2 of gross floor area, including back and front of house.

More information is available on our Supermarket recordkeeping mandate webpage.

Will I lose customers if I start giving food away?

Some businesses feel if they start donating food, their customers will stop buying and just wait for the food to be ‘free’. As it turns out, it’s quite the opposite. Donating food builds a positive brand, reputation and public image.

Large supermarket brands like Coles and Woolworths have seen the added benefits of giving back to the community and have been donating food for more than 10 years.

What if the food I donate makes someone sick?

In NSW, the Civil Liability Act 2002 No 22, known as the Good Samaritan Act, protects food donors from civil liability if donors ensure:

  • food is donated in good faith for a charitable or compassionate purpose
  • food is donated with the intent that the food consumer does not have to pay
  • food is safe to eat when it left possession or control of the donor
  • the donor gives the food rescue organisation any information it needs to ensure ongoing food safety.
What food can I donate?

Discuss this with your donation charity partner, but generally, you can donate:

  • excess food at supermarkets, markets, restaurants, cafes, bakeries etc
  • leftover, unused portions not served to customers or students, such as café/catering sandwiches, salads or buffet servings
  • food past its 'best before' date, provided the food is not damaged, deteriorated, perished or past a 'use by' date
  • incorrectly packaged food from food manufacturers
  • farm-grown food that does not meet supermarket size or cosmetic criteria.
Is there a difference between ‘best before’ and ‘use by’ dates?

Yes, there is an important difference between these 2 dates. 

Best before dates relate to quality and when food is expected to be at its best. Food can still be eaten and donated after this date if it’s been stored properly, and is not damaged, deteriorated or perished.

Use by dates are for safety, so food cannot be donated or sold after this date.

Infographic showing whether it is safe to donate food after its 'best before' or 'use by' date

For more information regarding ‘use by’ and ‘best before’ dates please visit the NSW Food Authority and Food Standards Australia.

Where can I donate food?

To start the conversation about food donation pickups in your area, search for a local community partner. 

Go to Service Seeker:

  1. Enter ‘Food’ as a keyword
  2. Enter your suburb or postcode
  3. Click ‘Find Services’.

This will display a list of community organisations including contact numbers on the left and an interactive map on the right.

If you regularly have more food to donate than your local charity can handle, talk to one of the larger Food Rescue Organisations or Regional Coordinators:

NSW Food Rescue Regional Coordinators

The NSW Food Rescue Regional Coordinators bring together a collective of local food rescue and relief organisations in an area or region of NSW for improved collaboration. 

Organisations across NSW are working closely with food relief providers, improving collaboration and communication across different regions.

Businesses can contact their local coordinator to join a network of local food relief providers to donate larger or more frequent food donations.

Regional Coordinators

Central West Coordinator – HopeCare Bathurst
Elliot Redwin
Operations Manager
E: [email protected] | W: www.hopecare.org.au

Illawarra Shoalhaven Coordinator – Healthy Cities Australia
Grace Potter
Fair Food Coordinator
E: [email protected] | W: www.healthycities.org.au

Murray / Riverina Coordinator – Albury Wodonga FoodShare
Mark Lucey
Projects Coordinator
E: [email protected]| W: www.foodshare.org.au

Northern Rivers Coordinator – Northern Rivers Community Gateway
Sarah Berenice
Food Rescue Project Officer
E: [email protected]| W: www.nrcg.org.au

Penrith (Western Sydney Coordinator) – SecondBite
Kingsley Lartey
State Manager
E: [email protected] | W: www.secondbite.org 

Riverina Coordinator – Foodbank NSW & ACT Limited
Mark Ludbrooke 
Community Impact and Engagement Manager
E: [email protected] | W: foodbanknsw.org.au 

If you are an organisation coordinating a network of food rescue and relief organisations across a region of NSW and want to be listed above, please contact us: [email protected].

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