A fantastic new initiative which helps staff grow their own organic fruit and vegetables and harvest honey from beehives at work is set to provide a solution to rapidly rising food prices.
The staff support programme established by Hancocks Wine Spirits Beer Merchants, a national beverage distribution firm for more than 200 South Auckland staff, provides up to 150 kg of fresh produce per person annually and is part of a quarter of a million dollar investment to reduce the cost of living for workers.
More than 20 contained gardens, known as vegepods, surround the fence line at the Mangere site where vegetables and herbs are planted and harvested by a team of volunteers to help feed staff and their families.
Sustainable gardening experts help educate the staff on how to harvest rainwater, grow fresh produce without the use of chemicals and pick only what is needed.
In addition, the company has invested in 30 lemon, lime, apple and mandarin trees and six beehives to provide the staff with honey all year around.
Joe Jakicevich, Hancocks managing director, says the initiative was created to provide employees some additional support as the cost-of-living spikes.
He says the programme may provide a template for other organisations wanting to help offset inflationary led increases in fresh produce prices.
According to Stats NZ prices of fruit and vegetables this winter have increased by 6% over the past year – driven by significant increases in cucumbers and green beans.
“We have had experts come in and give us some tips on gardening so many of our team are becoming quite green fingered. The teams have also learnt how to harvest just what they need to get the best out of the garden from a sustainability perspective and we are also collecting our own rainwater,” he says.
“It’s wonderful to see how proud the teams are of these pods, we call it our community garden and often staff will bring their kids and extended families in to have a look and show them what they’ve been doing,” he says.
“Right now, we’re getting underway for our spring planting, so we’ll be adding cherry tomatoes and obviously more lettuces as they are pretty pricey for people,” he says.
To supplement the community garden produce, Jakicevich also provides a monthly box of fresh fruit and vegetables for all staff members.
Jakicevich said it took three days to set the garden up and he hopes to expand the programme to the firm’s Christchurch and Wellington offices.
He says the raised garden beds can produce up to three tonnes of fruit and vegetables each year. A single large pod could produce up to 50 lettuces every six weeks – the retail equivalent of $2,500 annually. The value of each harvest can be significantly higher when growing other crops.
“Pandemic driven food shortages, the rising cost of produce, inflation, petrol and heating is having an impact on all Kiwis. We wanted to do something tangible for our staff that also gives them a sense of pride and teaches them new skills.
“My hope is that we will extend this programme, I’d love to be able to put a vegepod in each of their homes too,” he says.
Jakicevich has invested a quarter of a million dollars in support for his staff including health and wellness checks.
“As we look to life beyond COVID we can see the impact this has had on Kiwis mentally, physically and financially. I feel a responsibility to my staff to help ensure they are in the best possible place. I want Hancocks to be a good company full stop. That we are looking after people, looking after our community, and looking after customers,” he says.
Lisa Lowe, owner of Vegepod NZ, says the company has had a 55% increase in sales over the past 12 months as financial pressures continue to impact Kiwis.
“Initially we noticed sales start to climb as a result of COVID – as isolation measures saw households opting to grow their own produce.
“Sales have continued to grow beyond this as Kiwis feel the financial pressure and are turning towards finding ways to save money and help combat the rising cost of vegetable prices.
“We have also noticed a trend towards more people in the Millennial age group buying vegepods and getting back to basics by growing their own produce to lower their food bills,” she says.