This Week in the Market – 8 September 2020
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| In this week’s Market News: – Scholarships now available for Certificate III in Greengrocery – Advisory committee meetings being held this week – FareShare joins Melbourne Market Community Market News Latest Coronavirus (COVID-19) information Based on the road map released by the Victorian Government, there are no immediate changes to COVID restrictions at the Melbourne Market. All of existing restrictions and safety measures will remain in place for the coming weeks and will be re-assessed when Victoria begins to ease restrictions. As we continue to work, make sure you are doing the right thing; regularly wash and sanitise your hands, maintain a distance of 1.5 metres from others wherever possible and always wear your face covering. Detailed information regarding the impacts of COVID on Market operations can be found on our website at www.melbournemarket.com.au/melbourne-market-coronavirus-covid-19-response/. Scholarships now available for Certificate III in Greengrocery  In support of the Certificate III in Greengrocery, the MMA is offering several scholarships for those wishing to undertake the course. The MMA are offering five full-tuition scholarships (to the value of $1450 each) and ten partial-tuition scholarships (to the value of $725 each) for students enrolling in the course. Applications for the scholarship program are now open but will close on 25 September, so make sure you apply soon! Scholarship Eligibility CriteriaWork for a greengrocer or independent retailer who purchases from the Melbourne MarketWork for an A Better Choice member store (applicable for full tuition scholarship only)Over 18 years of ageScholarship awardees will be selected based on a range of criteria, including their commitment to the greengrocery industry. To find out more, and to apply for a scholarship place, visit the Melbourne Polytechnic website. The course has recently been updated to allow for a large proportion of the content to be delivered via online learning. There will still be some face-to-face interaction, with structured support from your teacher every fortnight, and some in-store education sessions throughout the course duration. If you would like to find out more about the Certificate III in Greengrocery, you can download a course flyer or email greengrocery@melbournemarket.com.au. Tell me more about the Certificate III in Greengrocery FareShare joins Melbourne Market Community  FareShare, which runs Australia’s largest charity kitchens, will soon be transforming tonnes of rescued food from the Melbourne Market into cooked, nutritious meals for those going hungry. The number of people seeking food relief has increased by more than 50% across Victoria since the start of the coronavirus pandemic. During this time, FareShare has continued cooking millions of meals for Victoria’s most vulnerable. From Monday, September 14, FareShare will start collecting vegetables from a new collection bay at the back of Store 6 at the northern end of the Market each morning from Monday to Friday. The vegetables donated will be used to cook meals in the Abbotsford kitchen, including casseroles, stews, curries, quiches and savoury pastries. All FareShare meals are given away free to frontline charities such as homeless shelters, soup vans, women’s refuges and community food banks. Vegetables required: Asian greens, beans, broccoli, brussel sprouts, cabbage, capsicum, carrots, cauliflower, celeriac, celery, corn, eggplant, garlic, ginger, leeks, mushrooms, onions, parsnips, peas, potatoes, pumpkin, silverbeet, snowpeas, spinach, squash, swedes, sweet potato, tomatoes, turnips, zucchini. Food recovery at the MarketFareShare joins our existing food recovery programs at the Market. Foodbank Foodbank has had a long history with the Melbourne Market community. Last financial year, Market wholesalers and growers donated over 200,000 kg of fresh produce to Foodbank, who then distributed it to vulnerable Victorians. The Foodbank collection point remains in its existing location behind store 148 at the south end of the Market. Foodbank accepts both fruit and vegetable donations. Melbourne Zoo The Melbourne Zoo also welcomes produce donations to help feed their animals. Market donations allow the zoo to focus more of its resources on supporting important zoo-based education and conservation work, and just because visitors may not be attending Victorian zoos at the moment, the animals still need to eat! Whilst there is no specific collection point at the Market for Melbourne Zoo donations, Colin Van Dyk is the Melbourne Zoo’s Foodstores Manager, and you will generally find him at the Market between 6 am – 8 am on Mondays, Tuesdays, Thursdays and Fridays. To donate produce to the Melbourne Zoo, you can call Colin on 0400 893 843. The MMA encourages growers and wholesalers to donate to FareShare, Foodbank and the Melbourne Zoo where you can. Upcoming Advisory Committee Meetings Advisory committee meetings are scheduled for today and tomorrow, and while the format of the meetings will be a little different, with the need to use technology to adhere to social distancing guidelines, they will still go ahead. Speaking to your advisory committee members is an effective way you can raise key issues with the MMA. To find out who your advisory committee members are, click here, and talk to them about the Market issues that affect you before the next meeting.  “I’m shopping local to support Spring Fresh” ‘Spring Fresh’ is the next national marketing campaign coming to consumers this September! Spring Fresh promotes a shopping occasion that places the community at heart and ‘shop local’ at the forefront. The campaign is centralised around showing people’s support of shopping local and aims to drive brand recognition of ‘A better choice!’ whilst increasing foot traffic into independent retail stores. The campaign will centre on radio and social media, and consists of:A multi-platform national radio campaign led by campaign ambassador, Yumi StynesPaid social media campaign to maximise reach and awarenessSocial media badges for consumers to express their support in shopping localA highly engaged influencer campaign to drive awareness and encourage word of mouthA new range of spring recipes available to retailers for customers, including an exclusive recipe from Master Chef’s Callum Hann! A Better Choice feedback Do you have feedback or questions about the A Better Choice program? We’d love to hear from you, send an email to abetterchoice@melbournemarket.com.au. Aggressive behaviour unacceptable We all have the right to feel safe when coming to work. While we are all feeling the strain of lockdown, we remind Market users that it is not acceptable to act in violent or threatening ways towards fellow Market users or towards Market Relations Officers and security staff. Those acting aggressively or violently towards others will be penalised, including being suspended or permanently banned from the Market. Industry News Hort Council pitches 10-point worker approach  The National Farmers’ Federation‘s Horticulture Council has presented governments with the list of measures to attract displaced Australians to farm work and to safely restart the meaningful recruitment of foreign workers. Click here to read the Horticulture Council’s 10-point approach on the Good Fruit and Vegetables website. Supermarket oligopoly is hurting Australia’s food industry: report The supermarket sector has come under fire in a new report, which claims Coles and Woolworths’ duopoly is a detriment to the overall agriculture and food industry. According to the Commission for the Human Future’s The need for strategic food policy in Australia report, all aspects of Australia’s food value chain are concentrated on serving the needs of just a few companies, with Coles and Woolies commanding around 60 per cent of fresh food and grocery sales between them. Read more on the Inside Retail website. Cornell releases new apple varieties The Cornell AgriTech apple breeding programme has announced the release of three new apple varieties NY56, NY73 and NY109 – marketed as Cordera, Pink Luster and Firecracker, respectively. The breeding programme has now developed more than 70 varieties since 1880, the most recent of which include SnapDragon and RubyFrost. Read more on the Produce Plus website. Melbourne Market Job Board  Do you have a vacancy to fill in your business? Email submissions@melbournemarket.com.au for the position to be placed on our new online job board. Jobs will be posted in the weekly newsletter and on the Melbourne Market website. Ask the MMA If you’ve got a question for the MMA email it to: submissions@melbournemarket.com.au. Follow us  |
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