A new report from ImpactLab provides comprehensive insights into the social impact of one of the initiatives created and implemented by the Food Hub Collective, an organisation supported by Healthy Families South Auckland.
The GoodMeasure Foundations and Forecast Report focuses on the Food Hub Collective’s Whenua to Whenua experiential learning programme, a series of initiatives that invite people to rethink food, reconnect with the whakapapa of kai, and reevaluate the relationship between people and place. The goal is to support long term food resilience, reduce waste, and strengthen community wellbeing.
The programme was delivered at the Papatoetoe Food Hub and the report outlines how the Food Hub Collective can continue to measure and strengthen its impact into the future.
Commissioned through Auckland Council’s Community Impact Unit, the report estimates a return of two dollars and ten cents in social value for every dollar invested. It also identifies key indicators and a forecast model to help guide future planning.
Healthy Families South Auckland Manager Matt Appleyard says the findings reinforce the cost benefit value of innovation and preventive community-led food initiatives.
“This report reflects the value of culturally grounded learning and community leadership,” he says.
“It validates that innovative community-led initiatives such as the Papatoetoe Food Hub and Whenua to Whenua can have effective outcomes, and that an upscaling of this programme will more than likely lead to greater impact.”
Whenua to Whenua was created by the Food Hub Collective, which ran the Papatoetoe Food Hub from 2019 to 2024.
The Food Hub Collective has a strong record of rescuing surplus food from supermarkets and farms, transforming it into affordable meals, and creating opportunities for employment, training, and learning about the local food system.
Healthy Families South Auckland’s Lead Systems Innovator Julio Bin, who has supported the Food Hub Collective with its strategic planning over the years, says their work demonstrates what is possible when community, local government and key partners work together.
“Papatoetoe Food Hub shows the power of public-private-community partnerships,” says Julio. “When different parts of the system come together with a shared purpose, we can tackle complex issues in ways no single group or organisation could achieve alone.”
With the report’s forecast model now in place, the community organisation along with its partners will be able to make more informed decisions about scaling, resource allocation, and long-term sustainability.
The report can be found on the Knowledge Auckland website.