Satisfy Food Rescue, based in North Canterbury, works with local food retailers and community organisations to redirect surplus food in the community to those who need it most.
As it expands, Pak'nSave Rangiora has helped Satisfy to shift from a manual to a more automated way of moving food and products in their warehouse.
Electric walkie stacker forklifts are an essential part of moving products around in supermarkets and retail distribution centres and warehouses.
James and Catherine say Satisfy Food Rescue, which they have partnered with since 2016, shares the same goals as they do — feeding the local community with a big focus on sustainability.
‘‘Foodstuffs South Island has a commitment to being here for New Zealand, by supporting local communities and providing them with healthy, affordable food, meaningful work and being leaders in sustainability.
‘‘This partnership is a perfect example of that commitment.
‘‘We specifically chose to partner with Satisfy as they were local and ensured the food we provided them stayed in our community, James says.
On one of our visits to their warehouse recently, we saw that the team were unloading a lot of pallets by hand and moving them manually around their premises.
‘‘We wanted to help enhance their logistical capabilities and make it safer and more efficient for them to move their product, and also distribute it to people in need.’’
The team at Pak'nSave Rangiora did an inventory of their equipment in store and found an electric walkie stacker forklift in good condition, which they could donate, providing a big hand in helping make Satisfy’s task less manual and more efficient.
James then reached out to his forklift supplier Crown to put together a plan to refurbish the machine and gift it to Satisfy Food Rescue.
Crown kindly donated its time for the refurbishment, and Pak'nSave Rangiora provided the parts and equipment required, including a brand new battery.
‘‘It’s really important to us that we support our local community, and we hope that our contribution to Satisfy Food Rescue will help make a lasting impact to improve food security,’’ James says.
Satisfy Food Rescue manager, Stef Van Meer, says Satisfy is expanding its operations, and the stacker will be a valuable asset in helping achieve this.
‘‘This will save us valuable time each week, allowing us to focus on ensuring the food in our warehouse gets out the door and delivered to the community faster.
‘‘It also means we can reduce the risk involved with manual handling of stock, as we no longer need to move pallets of food by hand,’’ she says.
