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                    Community Food Guide

                    Smiling women serving food from pans
                    Our Community Food Guide is a resource for community agencies or anyone in the community who needs information about how to access affordable, fresh and healthy food.

                    Whether it's affordable meals, food vouchers, community kitchens or community gardens to grow your own produce, this guide is a valuable resource that captures the services that offer these things within inner Melbourne. 

                    Many people within the City of Melbourne face daily challenges in accessing enough healthy food for a healthy life. Most of us are not eating enough fruit and vegetables to meet our nutritional needs and an increasing number of people are living in densely populated areas where growing food is more challenging.

                    The challenges faced by some in accessing sufficient food may worsen over time as natural resource constraints and climate stresses affect our food supply, leading to increases in the cost of food along with other essential household costs such as petrol and utility costs.

                    Support during COVID-19 pandemic

                    Many organisations have temporarily suspended or changed their services due to COVID-19. In April 2020 we updated the Community Food Guide to reflect which agencies and businesses are still operating, as well as any changes to their services.

                    Please note that due to current circumstances, some organisations may close or change their services at short notice. Check with individual organisations for more information.

                    About the guide

                    The guide provides information about food access programs, services and resources within the City of Melbourne and surrounding suburbs across the following categories:

                    • Food banks, parcels and vouchers
                    • Community meals, including free and cheap meals
                    • Food education, including classes and community kitchens
                    • Community gardens
                    • Fresh food and groceries, including markets, food delivery and shopping support
                    • Food rescue

                    Do you run a community food program in inner Melbourne?

                    You can submit a request to have it listed in the guide.

                    Or, you can request to update or remove an existing listing in the guide.

                    Interested in establishing a Community Food Program in the City of Melbourne?

                    Visit Grants and sponsorships to find information about our community grants, social enterprise grants and the community meal subsidy program.

                    You can find out more about City of Melbourne’s food policy, Food City.

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                    If you have a general enquiry or require a response, please contact us.