IHG Hotels & Resorts is supporting food rescue charity, OzHarvest, and its New Zealand-based sister organisation, KiwiHarvest, in donating meals to people in need throughout the month of September.
According to new data from OzHarvest, demand for food relief is at an all-time high due to the current cost of living pressures, with families and single parents being hardest hit.
The third year of its Stay for Good campaign will donate $1 from every stay (new and existing bookings) at participating IHG Hotels & Resorts properties across Australia and New Zealand from 1-30 September. Every $1 donation provides two meals to people in need and diverts a kilogram of food waste from landfill, helping to lower carbon emissions.
In the last two years, IHG’s Stay For Good initiative exceeded its target, donating over 361,000 meals to those facing food insecurity in Australia and New Zealand to date.
OzHarvest founder, Ronni Kahn, said initiatives like Stay For Good go a long way towards allowing the organisation to help more people in need as demand continues to grow amidst ongoing cost of living pressures.
“Our mission to Nourish our Country is more crucial than ever, and we couldn't achieve it without the amazing support of partners like IHG Hotels & Resorts,” said Kahn.
This year, more people are in need than ever, with 75 per cent of OzHarvest charities reporting an increase in demand for food and 30 per cent of people seeking help for the first time.
This spike in demand sees an average of 30,000 people turned away each month, despite OzHarvest feeding 57 per cent more people monthly compared to last year. Last year, the organisation reported that 3.7 million households across Australia went hungry at some point, equivalent to every household in Sydney and Melbourne combined.
IHG Hotels & Resorts Australasia & Pacific managing director, Matt Tripolone, said the hotel’s guests were looking for ways to give back to the communities they visit, and over the last few years that impact has come to life through the Stay For Good initiative.
“We’re entering our third year of Stay For Good with OzHarvest and second year with KiwiHarvest, and we’ve set an ambitious target to donate over 250,000 meals in 2024,” said Tripolone.
“It’s such an important cause, particularly as food insecurity continues to affect more and more people across Australia and New Zealand.”
The commitment to supporting OzHarvest and KiwiHarvest forms a part of the IHG Hotels & Resorts’ Journey to Tomorrow responsible business plan that includes an ambitious goal of improving the lives of 30 million people by 2030.
Participating IHG properties in Australia and New Zealand include: Hotel Indigo Sydney Potts Point, Hotel Indigo Melbourne on Flinders, InterContinental Sydney, InterContinental Sorrento Mornington Peninsula, InterContinental Hayman Island Resort, Hotel Indigo Brisbane City Centre, voco Kirkton Park, Crowne Plaza Auckland, Crowne Plaza Christchurch, InterContinental Wellington, Holiday Inn Queenstown Remarkables Park and more across IHG’s portfolio of brands.
