Inside Brisbane's Fareshare kitchen, that aims to cook 5 million meals for those in need

Extract from ABC News

By Talissa Siganto

Updated yesterday at 3:12pm

Photo: Volunteers peel and chop onions at the Fareshare charity kitchen. (ABC News: Nicola Murray)

Wiping tears from their eyes, volunteers surround a bench furiously peeling and chopping onions as they come in by the bagful.

It isn't easy work but there are no complaints in this basketball court-sized kitchen, which turns surplus food into free healthy meals for people in need around Queensland.
Their aim is to cook-up 1 million free meals by this time next year, but have long term goals to produce at least 5 million dishes a year.
The new industrial facility in Morningside, in Brisbane's east, is run by volunteers and decked out with "high volume" appliances that can process 500 tonnes of meat and vegetables a year.
The multi-million-dollar kitchen is a joint collaboration with Fareshare and Foodbank, two volunteer organisations who aim to relieve food poverty and reduce food waste.

Photo: FareShare production manager James Fien gives tips to volunteers. (ABC News: Nicola Murray)

Foodbank Queensland CEO Michael Rose said the new kitchen meant donated food would now travel further and reach more people.
"Last year alone, Foodbank received over 5 million kilograms of fresh fruit and vegetables, most of it direct from our generous Queensland farmers," he said.
"This kitchen gives us the opportunity to accept more of their donations, particularly perishable products."
"We'll be able to cryovac them and freeze them, it allows us to then transport those meals right throughout the state at a cost much less than we could if we were transporting the raw ingredients," he said.
Those running the site say it is the biggest charity kitchen in the Southern Hemisphere, distributing meals through almost 300 registered charities serviced by Foodbank.

Photo: The charity kitchen hopes to attract 5,000 volunteers. (ABC News: Nicola Murray)

Fareshare director Kellie Watson said the facilities could process eight "car boot loads" of vegetables in less than half an hour.
"We can convert a palette of zucchini in 20 minutes because we've got machinery that can make short work of that," she said.
"We've just got to make sure we keep going and put out as many as we can because with 400,000 Queenslanders being food-insecure and half of them being children it's quite dire out there," she said.
More than 400 volunteers have registered to lend a hand, with organisers hoping to attract up to 5,000.
At the official launch on Tuesday the Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk said the kitchen would help those "doing it tough".
"Whether a person is homelessness, whether a person is going through issues such as domestic or family violence, people need a helping hand," she said.