Product design: developing a system to strengthen and facilitate New Zealand food bank relationships

Abstract

This study aims to develop a product concept of a Donations Management System (DMS) which would enable supermarkets to donate surplus goods to food banks in an efficient manner. Wellbeing marketing has been employed as the underlying structure of development; ensuring that, while providing benefits to one stakeholder throughout the product lifecycle (acquisition, possession, consumption, maintenance and disposal), no harm is done to any other stakeholder. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with seven supermarkets and five food banks to explore their current practices. The results of these interviews informed the development of a focus group which was then conducted with four food banks to explore their needs.

The study showed that the established practices of supermarkets are sufficient in waste management and donation management and as such a DMS is not appropriate for that sector. In the food bank sector however an opportunity to provide coordination services for inter-food bank supply and donation redistribution was identified. The key finding of this study is that food banks do not need ‘new supply’; they need to better manage current supply through maximising what they do already. The most viable core form of a DMS is one which is able to transfer excess goods, thus decreasing food wastage and increasing the food supply to smaller food banks, allowing them to assist more citizens in need.