For Immediate Release

Logan, QLD – 6 September 2025

Warm Hearts Warm Bellies: Fighting Food Insecurity s Food Waste – One Pantry at a Time

As the cost-of-living crisis deepens across Australia, thousands of families are struggling to put food on the table. Meanwhile, millions of tonnes of edible food are wasted each year. Warm Hearts Warm Bellies Street Ministry Inc (WHWB) is bridging this critical gap.

WHWB: A Grassroots Solution with Scalable Impact

• Supports 4,000+ families every week across Logan and surrounds.

• Rescues and redistributes 6+ tonnes of fresh, quality food weekly that would otherwise end up in landfill.

• Operates 21 Community Pantries in schools, kindergartens, social housing, businesses and community centres.

• Prioritises dignified access: open 24/7, no forms, no fuss – just help when it’s needed.

• Built on lived experience: founded by Pete Underwood, whose journey through homelessness inspired the model.

A Smart, Scalable Model Tackling Two Crises

• Food insecurity: WHWB ensures families, kids, and vulnerable groups don’t go hungry.

• Food waste: Rescues surplus food from major partners including OzHarvest, SecondBite, and FoodBank.

• Community-first approach: trusted local relationships, embedded support, and real results.

SuperCool Group: A Powerful Corporate Ally

• Leading cold chain innovator SuperCool Group has joined forces with WHWB, partnering with Eurocold to donate a refrigerated truck to enable greater volume and safer food transport.

• SuperCool also mobilised support from across their network with Beijer Ref, AJ Baker C Sons and Dexion contributing fuel, cold storage, logistics and

• infrastructure.

• “The commercial sector holds enormous power to create real change. We believe in using our resources, skills, and networks to support local solutions like WHWB.” – Mark Mitchell, SuperCool Group Managing Director

Urgent Call: Help Find WHWB a Permanent Home

• WHWB urgently needs a 450–750m² industrial-zoned warehouse in Logan or surrounds.

• This will help support logistics, cold storage, and volunteer coordination to meet surging demand.

• With a forever home, WHWB can expand operations and reach more communities in crisis.

• “This is not just about food. It’s about dignity, hope, and the belief that no child, no parent, no neighbour should go hungry while good food goes to waste.” – Pete Underwood, WHWB Founder and Director

MEDIA CONTACTS

Pete Underwood
Director Warm Hearts Warm Bellies
Email: pete@warmhearts.au
Phone: 0411 401 136
Website: www.warmheartswarmbellies.org/

Mark Mitchell
Managing Director, SuperCool Group Email: mmitchell@supercool.group Phone: 0406 362 316
Website: www.supercool.group

About Warm Hearts Warm Bellies:
A Logan Queensland-based grassroots organisation, WHWB provides free, high-quality rescued food to thousands of families every week. Through community pantries, outreach programs, and social service partnerships, WHWB fights food insecurity with dignity and respect.

About SuperCool Group:
With over 44 years of leadership in the cold chain and mobile refrigeration industry, SuperCool Group is dedicated to reducing food waste and improving food security in Australia. Their local focus hopes to empower organisations like WHWB to thrive through innovative refrigeration, and process and logistics support.

OTHER MEDIA CONTACTS – Voices of the Community

By Order of the Peaky Barbers
Barber Shop, Beenleigh
Samir Farah – 0450 236 240

“At By Order of the Peaky Barbers in Beenleigh, we don’t just cut hair—we look after our people. Hosting a Community Pantry with WHWB was a natural extension of who we are: a welcoming place where men, families and young people can breathe out, get a sharp cut, a coffee, and a bit of dignity.”

About us & why we host a pantry
We’re a local barbershop built on old-school camaraderie, hospitality, and service. We see the best and the hardest parts of life from the barber chair. Putting a pantry on our counter felt like the most practical way to serve the same community that supports us—no forms, no fuss, just help when it’s needed.

How the partnership started
Pete and Carly came through with WHWB, we talked values, and it clicked straight away: zero waste, real impact, and local hands doing local good. From there, we said “yes” and got it moving.

What we receive
Typically we receive a mix of fresh produce when available, pantry staples (rice, pasta, cereal, long-life milk), snack packs, hygiene items, and occasionally baby/household essentials. It’s simple, useful, and disappears fast because people genuinely need it.

How often & how many supported
Donations arrive regularly (usually weekly or fortnightly depending on supply). On an average week, our little pantry helps dozens of people—everything from a quick school- lunch top-up to a few meals for someone doing it tough.

Community response
The response has been humble and heartfelt. We’ve had a young apprentice grab food to get through to payday; a dad pick up breakfast items for his kids; and a bloke on his way to a job interview grab a snack and a coffee—then come back the next week to tell us he got the job. The common thread is relief and gratitude.

Impact on our team & business
It’s strengthened our culture. The boys take pride in keeping the pantry neat, asking customers if they know someone who could use a hand, and treating everyone with the same respect whether they’re buying a skin fade or taking a meal. Customers notice. It turns transactions into community.

Why local businesses should get involved
Because it works. Food rescue keeps good food out of the bin and puts it in the hands of people who need it—today. Local shops already have the trust, the foot traffic, and the heart. A small shelf and a willing team can make a big difference.

Mums n’ Bubs Logan
Nat Millar, Owner/Operator
0423 984 738

I have had the pleasure of being a part of Warm Hearts, Warm Bellies since not long after it was established. I have watched this humble charity go from strength to strength over the last 2 years. It is a staple of the Logan community. Their community pantry at Browns Plains (the longest running one for Warm Hearts) is well known and very well utilised during the week as well as the weekends and after hours. Being the owner/operator of Mums n' Bubs Logan with over 30,000 members, it is so wonderful to be able to offer info about Warm Hearts pantry to any of my members in need of immediate food help for free.

The offer of crisis (one off) boxes are also so helpful to be able to let my members and the wider community know about, being that so many families are struggling. I am so very proud of Pete. Watching her go from strength to strength with Warm Hearts, Warm Bellies. It is her passion and truly shows in everything she does with the charity. Big things are still to come for Warm Hearts, Warm Bellies and I am so excited to be along for the ride.

Libi Coyer
Head of School, Eagleby Learning Centre 07 3382 9224

Warm Hearts Warm Bellies has certainly made a positive difference to our school community. One of our families have been able to access the pantry and as a result has been able to clear their rent arrears which is amazing for this family. One of our students has been attending the pantry every week since it started. This student, who is 16 years old, is an independent student and somewhat isolated as he is estranged from his family. The student attends to get food but also to connect with the staff which has been lovely as we have been able to get to know him and he has come out of his shell He has been able to improve his life skills which has included cleaning and making meals from the items he has got from the pantry.

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