OzHarvest, the waste-free supermarket where the customer sets the price. And those who can't, don't pay.

In Sydney, shopping can also mean making a concrete gesture of solidarity. It's not a slogan, but what happens every day in OzHarvest Market, anti-waste supermarkets born to transform food that risks ending up in the garbage into a precious resource for the community.

The project bears the signature of OzHarvest, the largest Australian organization dedicated to the recovery of surplus food. Founded in 2004, the non-profit organization collects every day perfectly edible, but no longer saleable, products from supermarkets, restaurants, bars and companies, redistributing them free of charge to charities and people in difficulty. In over twenty years of activity, OzHarvest has already contributed to the distribution of hundreds of millions of meals, becoming a point of reference in the fight against waste.

The OzHarvest Market concept is as simple as it is revolutionary. You walk in like any other supermarket, grab a cart—preferably bringing your own—and choose fresh fruit and vegetables, bread, ready meals, frozen foods, preserves, drinks, and even personal care and baby products. The only difference is that there is no price tag on the shelves.

Here the philosophy of “take what you need, give if you can”: take what you need and give what you can. Those who have nothing don't have to explain or justify themselves; those who can afford it contribute freely. Donations help support the functioning of the markets and fund the organization's other food assistance programs.

The first OzHarvest Market opened in Sydney in 2017 and still welcomes hundreds of people every week. More recently, in 2024, the initiative was extended to Adelaide, in response to the rising cost of living and the growing number of families in need. In just a few months, the new store has already distributed hundreds of thousands of meals, demonstrating the real and urgent need.

The entire system is also supported by the commitment of volunteers, who provide hospitality, order, and support, transforming the supermarket into a space for relationships, not just assistance. Recovered food arrives for a wide variety of reasons: a labeling error, a change in packaging, an expiration date too close for traditional sales. Nothing that compromises its quality, but enough to condemn it to waste.

In Australia it food waste It's staggering in scale: every year, millions of tons of food are thrown away, with enormous economic and environmental costs. One in five entire shopping bags ends up in the garbage, while thousands of people struggle to provide regular meals for their families. In this scenario, OzHarvest Market represents a practical and replicable response, capable of uniting environmental sustainability and social justice.

The idea of ​​the anti-waste solidarity supermarket has now spread beyond Australia's borders. Similar models have been adopted in several countries, including Italy, where Solidarity stores – active, among others, in Emilia-Romagna – offer concrete support to families in difficulty, recovering unsold food and restoring value to what would otherwise be discarded.

OzHarvest Market demonstrates that another way of shopping is possible. A way in which food is not just a commodity, but a tool for inclusion, respect, and collective responsibility.

 (Cover image and video credits: www.ozharvest.orge e Facebook)

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