Puta Ora Food Security Fund - Now Closed
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The following organisations were successful in their application for the Puta Ora Food Security Fund:
What we are funding
MSD wants to support community organisations with initiatives that increase access to healthy and affordable food in low-income communities and other communities experiencing food insecurity.
MSD is looking for applications around initiatives that:
- increase access to affordable, healthy, and sustainable food for people, whānau and communities who experience the highest levels of food insecurity; and / or
- enable Māori to exercise food sovereignty; and
- will be sustainable in the long term.
In doing so, these initiatives will help increase long-term food security and reduce the dependency on foodbanks and food hardship grants.
The name of the fund (Puta Ora) refers to concepts of wellbeing and nurturing that comes from growing food and doing the work - kōia te māra, ka puta te ora (dig the garden to bring health into view).
The total funding available is $4 million over twelve months from April 2023 to April 2024.
There is no set grant amount, but we estimate providing contributory funding to approximately 50 initiatives with grants averaging $50,000 each, and 15 initiatives with grants averaging $100,000 each.
What we are not funding
- Business-as-usual costs, such as usual staffing costs and overheads
- General restocking of food and supplies for foodbanks/pātaka.
Who could apply?
We are seeking applications from organisations that are registered as a Charitable Trust, Incorporated Society or other not-for-profit legal entity, and are able to demonstrate:
- Their governance and management structures are reflective of the makeup of the communities in which they operate.
- Their organisation and initiative has connections to mana whenua/hau kainga and/or groups in their community that are experiencing food insecurity.
- The initiative will be sustainable beyond the length of the grant funding.
- They are actively working together with others in their community.
- The initiative is targeted at outcomes for communities disproportionately affected by food insecurity.
- They can coordinate and implement the initiative, and measure and evaluate the initiative.
- There is a fair and reasonable budget that is linked to outcomes and is value for money.
Note: If a provider/initiative has received Food Secure Communities grant funding or Food Secure Communities Implementation grant funding, they will need to be up to date on their reporting requirements to be eligible to apply for this fund. The application will need to demonstrate that the initiative and budget for this fund builds on previous funding.
How to apply
Applications were open from 11 November 2022 and closed 3pm, Thursday 15 December 2022.
Key dates
|
Description |
Date |
|---|---|
|
Applications open |
11 November 2022 |
|
Applications close |
3pm, Thursday 15 December 2022 |
|
Grant decisions communicated |
Mid-April 2023. |
|
Grant agreements negotiated and signed |
from mid-April 2023 |
|
Grant start date |
17 April 2023 |
Evaluation criteria
The full evaluation approach is in the guidance for applicants. Applications will be evaluated on:
- Your organisation (25%)
- Initiative and target communities:
- The initiative (25%)
- How the initiative will benefit communities experiencing food insecurity (25%)
- How you will implement the initiative (25%)
Other considerations include:
- The geographical spread of providers
- The reach to disadvantages communities
- Strength of the application
- That if previous FSC funding has been received, the initiative builds on this funding
- Total costs for the initiative.
Do ensure that your application gives detailed and clear responses to ensure the panel can assess your application against the evaluation criteria.
Reporting requirements
An interim report will be required in October 2023 and at the completion of the 12-month funding period. The provider will maintain a relationship with MSD Food Secure Community relationship managers which may include at least one site visit.
Your questions
If you have any questions, please email msd_food_secure_communities@msd.govt.nz.
Puta Ora FAQs
Update on timeframes for grants
Due to the roll out of the Community Support Package for people impacted by North Island floods and Cyclone Gabrielle, we are unable to update applicants on the outcome of their application by the end of February as expected. We expect to update you on the outcome in March 2023, and for grants to start in April 2023 for 12 months.
Close date for applications extended to 3pm 15 December 2022
The application close date of 8 December 2022 is now extended to 3pm, Thursday 15 December 2022.
If you have already applied and would like to resubmit, please do so before 15 December 2022.
Eligible costs
As this is a limited fund, projects which require targeted investment and will be sustainable in the long term will be prioritised. We estimate that the average grant size will be $50,000-$100,000 over 12 months, and we anticipate that this funding will likely be contributory to the total costs of the initiative.
Food security is commonly defined in New Zealand as ‘all people, at all times, have physical, social, and economic access to sufficient, safe, and nutritious food that meets their food preferences and dietary needs for an active and healthy life’.
From this definition, four types of food security can be identified:
- Availability: Enough food of sufficient quality is available (production, distribution, storage)
- Access: The capacity to acquire and consume a nutritious diet (income, price, time, transport, food outlets, home storage and cooking facilities).
- Utilisation: Appropriate choices, use of and ability to eat and metabolise food (nutrition, food safety, cooking knowledge and skills, health status).
- Stability: Consistent availability and access to food, resilience of supply chain to environmental factors, disasters and economic shocks.
MSD is interested in initiatives that will help increase long-term food security and reduce dependency on foodbanks and food hardship grants.
What are some ways that we can increase the food security of our community?
Some resources to assist your thinking about how to increase the food security of your community include:
- The Southern Initiative - ‘Good Food Road Map’ with an accompanying action plan.
- Kore Hiakai discuss what a shift from food insecurity to food security looks like.
- MSD and Kore Hiakai’s Just Kai? webinars explore this topic.
