General News
18 March, 2026
Food rescue markets expanding
CAMPERDOWN and District Community House has announced a partnership with Cobden Uniting Church Op Shop to bring food rescue markets to Cobden following the success of the markets in Camperdown.
The markets in Camperdown, which have been held at the Camperdown Uniting Church every month since 2024, aim to reduce the amount of food ending up in landfill by redirecting usable food to free community markets.
Community House coordinator Emily Mercer said food waste was a huge issue in Victoria.
“Sustainability Victoria reports that in 2020 over two tonnes of food was wasted across Victoria,” she said.
“Each year this costs us $6 billion made up of lost product value and disposal fees, creates three million tonnes of carbon dioxide emissions and wastes 29 billion litres of water.
“We will be hosting market days at the Cobden Uniting Church Hall, corner Curdie and Adam Streets, initially every second month starting on Friday, April 10.
“Everyone in the community is welcome to visit on market day, just bring along your shopping bags and together we can reduce the amount of food unnecessarily heading to landfill.”
Cobden Uniting Church op shop welfare officer Helen Perkins said church volunteers were proud to be a part of the program.
“Emily asked us whether we would be interested in having some food rescue markets in Cobden and we said yes,” she said.
“It saves so much food from going to landfill and it benefits the community at the same time.
“We’re going to have them every second month, alternate to the ones in Camperdown.
“We want to call out to the community – anyone who has any fresh produce or extras that they don’t need, please bring it in the day before.
“There are so many people struggling and to be able to offer food for nothing to people is a fantastic initiative.”
Ms Mercer said the Cobden food markets would be supported by Ritchies IGA Cobden, Corangamite Foodbank and Western District Foodshare.
“We will also be looking to engage local food producers and providers in Cobden and surrounds who may have food waste products that could be circulated back into the community via these markets,” she said.
“Food Rescue Markets is not a food relief program, they are community events with the primary aim of reducing food waste in our community and food from going to landfill.
“The markets are open to anyone in the community interested in helping reduce food waste – you are not required to be in need of food relief to attend a market day.
“It is an expectation that market goers will be considerate of others attending the market day by not taking too many items that are short in supply, but in the end we are wanting items to be taken, otherwise they will be ending up in landfill, which is why this initiative started in the first place.
“We ask that all market attendees be respectful of each other and of the organisers and volunteers.”
The market, like the market in Camperdown, will run between 10-11.30am.
Anyone interested in donating produce to the market can contact Ms Mercer on 5593 1403 or the Cobden Uniting Church Op Shop on 0475 699 483.
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