Finding affordable, healthy and culturally appropriate foods is an increasing problem in some towns and suburbs around the country.
But as Aileen Phillips reports, a new initiative is helping put food on tables in Melbourne's north and combat growing food security issues.
Marium Farhan is a regular at Melbourne's Fawkner Community Market.
"I come to this market because it's really near our home and the prices are reasonable. And the people, the volunteers, are really nice, and they help us out a lot."
She says, if the market did not exist, it would be very challenging to get the fresh produce.
"All the other shops around here, I find that the prices are about (the same) or a bit higher but they're not really fresh, the food's aren't really fresh. So, it's really difficult, because then we go all the way to Lalor, and it's really hard for us to go there because my husband, he works, and so it's really hard for us to reach that place."
The market is an offshoot of the Community Grocer in the suburb of Carlton, which provides public housing residents access to affordable and healthy food.
Fawkner has been chosen to trial a concept which could roll out around the state.
The market was established to target low-income families and newly arrived refugees in an attempt to combat food security issues.
Sarah Cotsopoulos is from Merri Community Health Services, which supports the Community Grocer project.
She says there are a number of issues that make getting fresh, healthy, affordable and culturally appropriate foods a challenge.
"We've got about six fresh fruit and veg outlets, compared to 13 takeaway outlets in the area. And we do find that transport's a really big issue for the community in Fawkner, so people often don't have a car or they're relying on walking to get to the shops. So it's quite difficult."
She says statistics surrounding food security in the area were startling.
"In 2011, we saw that about 5 per cent of people said that they were food insecure, whereas it jumped to about 11 per cent in 2013. So we saw that that was a really big increase and really wanted to do something about it to help the community and to improve access to fresh fruit and veg."
(Ganesha:) "You should try the grapes. We have them for the first time." (Customer:) "Yeah, I noticed that." (Ganesha:) "I think they are really sweet."
30-year-old Ganesha Ganesha volunteers at the market.
He says it is a beautiful initiative.
"If you ask me, this is the hallmark, or trademark, of Australia. So, only in Australia. I haven't seen it in Singapore, to my knowledge. This is addressing a big issue in communities these days. It's that 'How do we get quality produce for quality price?'"
For example, market customers pay $2.50 per kilogram for apples, compared to about double that at the big supermarkets.
And most of the produce at the market retails for 10 to 30 per cent less than at the supermarkets.
As Sarah Cotsopoulos puts it, those who are after more traditional ingredients are catered for, too.
"We've got quite a few people from Pakistan who love their okra, so we always make sure there's okra here for people to purchase. And we've also got a big Italian community in Fawkner, so we've always got the tomatoes and zucchinis. So things that people would be using quite often."
All the produce comes from a local supplier, who buys it from a wholesaler.
Any profit made from the market gets put back into it.
And each week, volunteers and shoppers are treated to a free vegetarian barbeque, using market produce.
The barbeque not only feeds those who sometimes go without food, but Ganesha Ganesha, the volunteer, says it is so much more.
"Community engagement is one very big thing of this community-grocer project. When they come here, not only do we engage them, but they meet their fellow Fawkner residents. And then you find people of different ethnicities mixing around. And because of the barbeque, when they join us, that is sort of a social event as well."
There is little waste as well, with most left over fresh produce donated to local relief agencies.
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