Healthy Pilbara Partnership recognised for excellence

Foodbank WA and BHP’s healthy eating and education partnership in the Pilbara was the winner of the Community Partnership category in the 2018 Resources Sector Awards for Excellence.

The Department of Mines, Industry Regulation and Safety’s Community Partnership Resources Sector Awards recognises partnerships that are going above and beyond to support the local communities in which they operate, helping them to thrive and grow.

The eight year partnership between not-for-profit hunger relief organisation Foodbank WA and leading global resources company BHP, is delivering evidence-based healthy eating and cooking programs throughout the Pilbara region, to give people the knowledge, skills and confidence needed to make positive lifestyle changes.

Foodbank WA’s Healthy Food for All Acting Manager, Vanessa Bobongie, said they are incredibly proud of the partnership’s long-term commitment to the health and wellbeing of those living in the Pilbara and they are thrilled to be recognised in this way.

“Thanks to the long-term support provided by BHP in the Pilbara, we are now at a point where we see kids who have attended our School Breakfast Program, go on to enjoy our healthy eating and cooking programs in primary school and high school, and now have kids of their own who they bring to our parents program. Delivering nutrition education right across the lifecycle really enables us to support the whole Pilbara community,” Mrs Bobongie said.

Meath Hammond, BHP Head of Corporate Affairs Western Australia said BHP is proud to support Foodbank WA in the delivery of valuable and lasting education programs to the Pilbara region of Western Australia.

Since 2016, BHP’s funding has enabled Foodbank WA’s School Breakfast Program to be delivered in 15 Pilbara schools, feeding over 420 students every week.

Foodbank WA’s qualified nutritionists visited the Pilbara ten times a year to deliver their healthy eating and cooking programs in local towns and communities.