Seeing Abundance.

One of the strengths of Eat New Zealand has been imagining, in a tangible way, a food system that can feed us all and speaks to our place in the world. Our ability to feed our families and our visitors with our own food gives us mana and an ability to thrive. When we have enough to celebrate who we are, then we are truly rich.

Holding this vision for Aotearoa as a not-for-profit has its moments. We work super hard with very little resource but a huge amount of energy and passion. We’re surrounded by a large network of fellow thought leaders, all determined to move us towards this vision of abundance.

If I had a dollar for every time someone has said to me “I love the work that Eat New Zealand does” life would be so much simpler! So to recharge us all, we’ve taken some time to acknowledge the wins we’ve had as a movement this year, but also to use this moment to ask for help. If you’re an organisation that is keen to align yourselves with a future focussed, regenerative food movement, come at us.

We’ve decided to postpone next year’s Hui until the third quarter so we can ensure we have the right partners on board, and in the meantime, we’ve doubled down on our purpose and mission so you can all understand who we are...

There is so much goodness in this newsletter, from the Eat New Zealand podcast with one of the world’s leading arable and regenerative farmers, Andy Cato, to a brand new collection of Kaitaki stories on Substack. We announce a new hashtag #RepurposeTheSurplus and there's info about The Big Feed taking place today throughout Aotearoa.

Wishing you all peace and plates full of kai that nourishes both your puku (belly) and your wairua (soul).

Meri Kirihimete ki a koutou.

Angela Clifford, CE Eat New Zealand.

@eat.newzealand

#KnowYourFarmer #KnowYourFisher #EatNZGrains #GrowFoodCommunities #EatNZKaitaki #RepurposeTheSurplus #LotOfLittle

Take me to Eat New Zealand's Wins in 2022

The Eat New Zealand Manifesto

Tune into the Andy Cato Interview

We have good news for those who missed our conversation between Angela Clifford and Andy Cato, arable farmer, owner of Wildfarmed and one-half of electronic music duo Groove Armada in Ōtautahi a few weeks ago.

Tune into the full interview on our Eat New Zealand Podcast here.

You'll hear about his journey from musician to farmer, and his efforts to work on the grains system in the UK by reconnecting people with where their grains come from.

Thanks again to Foundation for Arable Research and Fran Bailey (who is part of our Eat NZ fam) for making this possible, and to the incredible Andy Cato for sharing his story. #EatNZGrains

Take me to the Andy Cato Interview

#EatNZKaitaki now on Substack

We're super excited to officially launch the Eat New Zealand Kaitaki Substack. This will be a platform of stories, images, video, poetry and content from the diverse voices within our 100 strong collective of next-generation food storytellers.

We'll be adding new content regularly and all you need to do is subscribe (it's free!) to access a plethora of fascinating food stories that reflect who we are.

Stay tuned over on socials to see what else our #EatNZKaitaki are up to throughout Aotearoa ~ @eat.newzealand.

Take me to the EatNZKaitaki Substack!

#RepurposeTheSurplus

Did you know that over the festive holiday season 40 percent more food will be wasted! As such it's a great time to officially launch the new Eat New Zealand minimising food waste hashtag: #RepurposeTheSurplus.

We asked our Kaitaki to come up with hashtag suggestions which ranged from #bigwaistnotbigwaste to #nourishbodiesnotbins but in the end, it was Ella Bailey's #RepurposeTheSurplus that inspired us the most.

We have many Kaitaki who are food waste heroes and Angela is also an NZ Food Waste Champion 12.3. One of those heroes is Lydia (an NZ Registered Nutritionist, Market Gardener and Composter) and her startup company is 'Pickled Compost' - a Bokashi starter from upcycled coffee husks.

Bokashi makes almost any food item compostable. Things that normally take a long time to break down or attract pests can all be pickled - including raw and cooked meat, fish, leftovers, dairy and citrus. Once fully pickled these foods break down twice as fast in soil, releasing essential nutrients to grow nutritious food! Learn more on the Pickled Compost website.

If you see examples of our #RepurposeTheSurplus kaupapa being implemented throughout the country - be sure to let us know, or tag us on social media (@eat.newzealand ) so we can share!

NZ Farmers Feeding NZ Families

Today marks THE BIG FEED day for the team at Meat The Need. New Zealand's first rural telethon with the goal to raise ONE MILLION MEALS for New Zealand's vulnerable families. It's an initiative focused on getting nutrient dense protein from New Zealand farmers and gifting it to as many New Zealand families as possible.

To take part you can:

- Donate, livestock, milk or cash

- Text FEED to 206 for a $3 donation

- Jump on the live stream to show your support here.

- Set a challenge for Wayne, he will work for the donations :)

See more details from this awesome event here.