JAC drives food rescue
Food-rescue charity KiwiHarvest may quietly go about its work, but it’s an everyday hero for thousands of New Zealanders who rely on its support.
KiwiHarvest rescues 14 tonnes of nutritious food every working day before it hits landfill and redirects it to charities including Salvation Army, Kindness Collective, Women’s Refuges, food banks, maraes and community organisations across Aotearoa.
And behind the scenes helping keep deliveries rolling is JAC Trucks, one of its proud supporters. Over the past year, KiwiHarvest’s Auckland team has been using a fully electric JAC EV truck, zipping around the city to collect and deliver rescued food from supermarkets to distribution centres and food manufacturers.
Andrew Craw, JAC NZ’s general manager, says partnering with KiwiHarvest has been a natural fit from the start.
“Since our EV Truck joined the KiwiHarvest fleet a year ago, it has helped rescue 250 tons of good food – the equivalent to 480,000 meals. This food has a retail value of $1.7 million that would otherwise have gone to waste.
“The other great benefit of our partnership is we’ve also prevented 750 tons of CO2 emissions that would have been released if this food had gone to landfill.
“That’s just the environmental savings from the food itself. Add in the truck’s 11,500km of emission-free travel and the carbon savings really stack up.”
Seti Tuala, pictured above, is KiwiHarvest’s longest-serving food-rescue driver and was the lucky team member to receive the e-truck as her vehicle. She cheekily brags she has “the best truck in the fleet”.
Chief executive officer Angela Calver says KiwiHarvest is deeply grateful to JAC for generously loaning the vehicle over the past year.
She says: “This vehicle is more than just transportation, it was a catalyst for impact. The truck was vital to the growth we achieved this year, enabling us to serve more in our community sustainably and expand our mission in ways that wouldn’t have been possible otherwise.”
Craw adds: “When we first explored supporting KiwiHarvest, it just made sense. We’re a trucking company committed to providing options to improve sustainability and reduce emissions.
“KiwiHarvest is on the ground every day doing the same – preventing waste, reducing carbon emissions and supporting Kiwis in need. It just goes hand in hand.”
