Who we are
Food Fairness Illawarra (FFI) is a community coalition that has worked together since 2005 to make healthy and sustainable food affordable and accessible for all.
Guided by representatives from six key organisations (Healthy Cities Illawarra, Illawarra Shoalhaven Local Health District, Wollongong City Council, Shellharbour City Council, Kiama Municipal Council and the University of Wollongong), FFI has a wider network of over 1000 individuals, community groups, charities and non-government organisations, who recognise the need for collaboration between community, industry, and governments to unlock fairer food solutions.
Our work strongly aligns with and supports the following United Nation’s Sustainable Development Goals:
Our Vision & Goals
FFI Strategic PlanMake healthy and sustainable food available and affordable for all
Goal - Availability
Grow a vibrant local food culture and economy which supports growers and producers
Goal - Access
Enable Illawarra residents to access affordable, culturally appropriate, nutritious, sustainable and local food
Goal - Use and Utilisation
Enhance food knowledge and skills within our community to make healthy food choices the norm and accessible to all
Goal - Stability
A coordinated, well-structured coalition to enable collective action
What we do

Connect & Collaborate
Bring our community together to connect and share information and resources.

Advocacy
Highlight local issues and lobby for policy and planning developments contributing to a fairer food system.

Empowerment
Strengthen community action and develop personal skills by providing tools, highlighting opportunities, and enabling knowledge sharing to drive the fair food conversation across all levels of society.

Education
Inform and enable knowledge-sharing to drive the fair food conversation across all levels of society.

Research
Contribute to and utilise the evidence base to build a fair food system.

Governance
Maintain a coordinated, well-structured coalition to enable collective action.
Our Team
Meet our coalition made up of members from
- NSW Health
- Healthy Cities Illawarra
- Wollongong Council
- Shellharbour City Council
- Kiama Municipal Council
- The University of Wollongong
Rosi Johnston
Chair
Illawarra Shoalhaven Local Health District

Lauren Peters
Shellharbour City Council

Belinda Gibbons
University Of Wollongong

Galavizh Ahmadi Nia
Kiama Municipal Council

Tracy Venaglia
Wollongong City Council

Berbel Franse
FFI Coordinator
Healthy cities Illawarra

Deanne Condon-Paoloni
Founding Member
University of Wollongong

Robyn Tindall
Founding Member
Illawarra Shoalhaven Local Health District

Our Achievements
2005
Inception of Food Fairness Illawarra
2006
Low Cost & Free Meals Directory
2007
OzHarvest comes to the Illawarra
2008
FFI Grows and develops
2009
Illawarra Regional Food Forum
2010
Food Fairness Illawarra goes online
2011
Advocacy for food security in urban planning
2012
School gardens and National Food Plan
2013
Illawarra Regional Food Strategy
2014
Stop Good Food Going to Waste
2015
Collaboration for access to good food
2016
Connecting over Fair Food
2017
Environmental Need Assessment
2018
Strategy
2019
Food rescue augmented
2020
Food security in the Illawarra during the Covid-19 response