Sustainability super star PUTTING FOOD IN HUNGRY KIWI TUMS

The caring grandmother is dishing up solutions for communities in need

- Hayley McLarin

A s Deborah Manning snuggles into her grandchild, she ponders what the future holds for 14-month-old Millie. What can she do to make her world a better place?

It’s that altruistic view on life that saw the mother of three set up food rescue social enterprises Kiwi Harvest 10 years ago, followed by cofounding the New Zealand Food Network in 2020.

“I was working as a lawyer in Dunedin and got to that point where my children were growing up, and I thought, ‘What sort of legacy am I going to leave for my children and their children? How can I be more involved in creating a better world?’” she explains to the Weekly.

Deborah was reading a newspaper article about a person who was “dumpster diving” for food outside a restaurant, and on the same page there was a story about child poverty and food security.

It set the wheels in motion for an idea that would see hundreds of thousands of tonnes of food being diverted from landfill to go to New Zealanders in need.

“On the first day, I collected seven kilograms of food. I was so proud of myself. Now on our biggest day, we collect 41,000 kilograms. It’s very satisfying.”