Australian Social Enterprises

The Welcome Table, by House of Welcome, is a work-integrated social enterprise that supports people seeking asylum and refugees to build skills, confidence and community connections while helping break down the barriers that limit their employment opportunities. Supported by the wraparound support services of House of Welcome, we create impact in three ways: 1) Delivering vibrant, multicultural catering from the heart of Western Sydney. People seeking asylum and refugees gain essential commercial cookery, food safety and workplace skills as trainees in our six-month program. In our kitchen, they build confidence and share their culinary heritage while creating fresh, generous food with professionalism and pride 2) Nutritious, culturally appropriate food for people experiencing food insecurity. Funded by partners and donors, these meals nourish individuals and families in our local communities. They offer comfort, dignity and connection, while demonstrating the contribution people seeking asylum and refugees can make to our society and 3) Shared cooking, cultural food experiences and volunteering. These food-based experiences bring people together around a shared table while supporting people seeking asylum and refugees to build confidence, practise communication and share their culture, forming meaningful connections within their local communities.

100% Aboriginal owned, by Clarence Bruinsma (Yaegl) and Adam Byrne (Garigal/Gadigal). Bush to Bowl is a social enterprise aimed at creating a healing space & platform for First Nations people by connecting to Country and their traditional foodways. We practice our culture on a daily basis by giving back to Country, our mob and the wider community.

Opening doors for refugee, migrant, women and First Nations food entrepreneurs through food business training, shared kitchen space, and a corporate catering business.

Gadhungal Marring is a 100% Aboriginal-owned and operated business dedicated to strengthening Aboriginal people and their communities through cultural land and water management practices. Guided by the principle of Buwindyala, working together in unity, we combine traditional knowledge with modern techniques to restore Country, protect waterways, and support sustainable futures. By working hand-in-hand with businesses, government, and community groups, we deliver outcomes that are both cultural and ecological, ensuring Country and culture thrive together.

We sell Sri Lankan Inspired Home Cooking Kits - Make with Spices imported from Sri Lanka. The farmers in Sri Lanka are all women smallholder farmers who are marginalised and not given an opportunity to make a living. Our packaging is 100% sustainable. (Recycleable or comosrable) and we follow a zero waste philospphy. Our supply chain is 80% sustainable and we use very little or no plastics. Once we grow we aspire to employ people with Disabilities to provide them meaningful employment. Expand the brand in to a food service space to allow more employement - in a cafe restaurent style setting.

Green Connect Farm is a not-for-profit urban farm in Warrawong, NSW that grows organic food and provides employment, training, and work experience for young people and former refugees facing barriers to work.

To create space for young people to grow. Through growing food and regenerating land, we offer engagement, training and employment opportunities to 12-24 year olds in a hands-on, project-based, supportive environment.

Our mission is to end the food crisis in First Nation communities in our lifetime.

Pocket City Farms empowers communities through education to increase food growing in urban areas, tackle food insecurity and take action on climate change.

Queer Food launched its first retail product online in November 2023 with a simple idea, to tell LGBTQIA+ stories through food. Our first product, a dukkah made in collaboration with Shawnah Cady (aka MadB) for their wedding, has since expanded into a national retail range. Every item we create is rooted in storytelling, inspired by LGBTQIA+ history or developed in collaboration with community icons, shaping everything in our product range. Along the way, we ventured into catering, but soon realised our true passion was in crafting meaningful retail products, focusing on fewer things, and doing them with greater care and purpose. Throughout our journey, we've remained committed to creating employment opportunities for queer and trans people and reinvesting a portion of our revenue into initiatives that support and uplift our communities. Today, Queer Food continues to use food as a platform for visibility, pride, and connection, proving that every bite can be an act of cultural change.

Roswods is a food manufacturer/distributor and here to make regenerative and responsibly grown food accessible to everyday households, while restoring soil health, supporting farmers and rebuilding trust in the food system. We enable everyday households to access nourishment that cares for all three aspects: your wellness, the planet, and the communities who grow your food, making it part of everyday life.

Maturing Social Enterprise created to provide meaningful and gainful employment for people living with disabilities by providing sustainable gardening services and products to the Canberra Region. " Growing with Purpose - All Ability Workers and Sustainable Gardens"

Think+DO Tank Foundation collaborates with low-income and marginalised, urban communities in NSW, focusing on culturally and linguistically diverse women and children. Together, we develop a shared way of doing things, designing projects that have a demonstrated and lasting impact. Our evidence-based, replicable approaches improve social cohesion; reduce isolation; strengthen community capacity; and foster equity. By using the arts, imagination and creativity and social enterprise to approach communities we shift the realms of possibility while we simultaneously address the pragmatic challenges of disadvantage which hinder change.

Our aim is to create generational prosperity for our employees and meaningful, sustainable work for those facing barriers to life and employment. We bridge the gap of opportunity by providing a workplace environment based around connection and community. Our focus is on employing and mentoring young people who face systemic disadvantages to reach their full potential, creating native garden spaces together, with community for community . We bring Country back to urban spaces by focusing on nature and biodiversity, emphasising softscapes, Indigenous plants, and building food forests.