Saving our planet one meal at a time!

The Bay of Plenty is bracing itself for a culinary treat like no other. Take 300 women, delight them with a delectable menu of mouth-watering rescued food and you have two very excited local charities.

The annual Ladies Long Lunch is in its third year and organisers are braving new boundaries trying to raise awareness and enhance sustainability.

Te Aranui Youth Trust and Good Neighbour Trust have teamed up for the past two years hosting the annual Ladies Long Lunch, but this year they will go where no charity has gone before. They will join forces with Toi Ohomai Institute of Technology’s Tauranga campus with students designing and preparing this year’s meal solely from food that has been rescued by dozens of community volunteers.

"We have been talking about this for a while, as far as I know it has never been done before. Preparing a menu for three hundred women all made from rescued food. It is exciting," said Jackie Payne the Food Rescue coordinator from Good Neighbour Trust.

Not only will the menu be created from rescued food, but the Toi Ohomai students will also be assessed on their efforts; the event will become part of their curriculum.

Toi Ohomai Chief Executive, Dr Leon Fourie, said he was excited about the collaboration which enabled students to contribute to two great charities invested in making Bay communities a better place.

“Core to our values at Toi Ohomai is supporting and enabling the most vulnerable members of our communities,” said Dr Fourie. “That’s why partnering with the Ladies Long Lunch is a no brainer for us. The charities that this enterprise represents is an excellent fit for us – it also provides a fantastic learning opportunity for our students by passing on real-world experience. We look forward to working with the team to bring this one-of-a-kind event to the Bay.”

Chef Tutor Peter Blakeway says his students are buzzing at the prospect of creating a menu from food that was destined to clog up our landfill.

“We are not just talking about any old meal here,” said Peter. “The ladies who are fortunate enough to secure a ticket better prepare themselves for one of the best meals of their entire lives!"

The celebrity chef with Michelin stars promises this unique event will change the way people think about sustainability and rescued food.

“We throw away around 40 percent of our food in the Western World, while over a billion people are starving; it is no longer acceptable.”

The Ladies Long Lunch originally attracted 400 women in its first year and last year it sold out with nearly 800 guests; organisers say they are taking a gamble with reducing numbers.

“For us, it is not just about numbers through the door, it is about making those who attend more engaged in both charities,” said Lavina Good who is on the Board of both Te Aranui Youth Trust and Good Neighbour Trust.

“I am proud of both charities,” said Lavina. “Te Aranui Youth Trust focuses on empowering kids who have really struggled through no fault of their own and Good Neighbour works hard to bring the community together with garden projects and our highly successful Food Rescue Service."

The Good Neighbour Food Rescue service started three years ago saving a couple of boxes a week. Now 90 volunteers help rescue 6 tonnes of food every week and distribute that food to 42 Charities.

Te Aranui Youth Trust works in close partnership with New Zealand Police delivering programs aimed at reducing offending and creating safer communities in our region. Programmes including Blue Light youth engagement events, Safer Young Driver Expo and Te Ara Poutama Youth Mentoring,

The Ladies Long Lunch Committee is hoping to raise $100,000 this year. The funds will be used to set up a Commercial Kitchen at Food Rescue, and support future programmes at Te Aranui Youth Trust including an innovative project to support the war on P. Only 300 tickets are available this year, a save the date has been announced, ticket sales available shortly. For interest please contact the Ladies Long Lunch team.