SSI partners with NSW Health to offer healthy cooking tips for Staple Bag customers

The cooking lesson with students on placement from NSW Health aimed to teach people about easy and healthy cooking, with all ingredients available for purchase afterwards from The Staples Bag pop-up store. The Staples Bag social enterprise sells heavily discounted food staples across twelve different locations in NSW, and has held a pop-up store at Potts Point The Wayside Chapel every Wednesday, from 12.30 to 2.30pm.

The cooking lesson and pop-up store were another step in the relationship between The Staples Bag and The Wayside Chapel communities since their partnership began in February this year. The Partnership gives local residents access to affordable and healthy food to help address issues of food insecurity in Sydney.

“At Staples Bag we are committed to empowering our community’s low income earners by providing easy access to low-cost and high-quality nutritious food,” Mr Terry Wilson, Manager SSI Employment and Enterprises, said.

“We’re aware that a healthy approach to meal preparation might not be top of mind when someone is struggling to make ends meet.

“With this lesson, The Staples Bag team has been able to demonstrate that a healthy and nutritious lifestyle can be achieved on a low budget.”

The team of Dietetics students showed how to prepare spaghetti Bolognese, a family classic that is good a source of nutrition due to the amount of meat and vegetables it contains, NSW Heath Community HIV Dietician Rosalind Moxham said.

“The idea is to show how to prepare meals that have a high nutritional value, but taking into account the products available at the Staples Bag and the kitchen equipment most visitors in this community have access to,” Ms Moxham said.

“This was our first cooking demonstration but we’re keen to do more in the future to support disadvantaged communities, such as social housing tenants.”

The students have also contributed to the program by creating meal plans, recipe cards and information on nutrition and food storage that will soon be available on the Staples Bag website.

The standard Staples Bag includes around $70 worth of nutritious and essential food items such as milk, bread, assorted pantry staples, seasonal vegetables, meat, poultry, seafood and fruit, for $20. There are is also a vegetarian option for $15 and a family hamper, designed to feed 3-4 people for a week, for $30.

You can buy your Staples Bag at The Wayside Chapel, 29 Hughes Street, Potts Point, every Wednesday between 12.30pm and 2.30pm. Alternatively, you can visit the Staples Bag retail store Monday to Friday between 9.30am and 4.30pm in Campsie, or order online at www.thestaplesbag.com.au.

The Staples Bag is a social enterprise of:

SSI Employment