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Top End Local Food Challenge

Join fellow food lovers in the Top End for a week long challenge to eat as much local produce in your meals as possible. GULP NT & COOLmob will be partnering with many organisations to help you train for the week and you can sign up to take the challenge on whatever level you feel most comfortable.

The Top End Local Food Challenge celebrates the abundance of food that grows in our own backyard! This September, join COOLmob and GULP NT in challenging yourself to make the switch to eating local. Not only is it good for the planet but you will also be supporting local farmers and food producers AND eating a lot more healthily. *Local food will be defined as "Top End' so from below Katherine to Tiwi Islands- but as local as possible encouraged.

The Challenge...

  • Bite size: Incorporating at least one local food ingredient into at least one meal every day for the week
  • Meal size: One meal every day for the week made with mostly locally grown or produced ingredients
  • Fresh foods: Sourcing all your fresh food (fruit and veg and meats) for the entire week locally
  • Survival style: Every single food and ingredient you eat for the week is 100% local including salt and oil

Sign up here to take the challenge! 

Workshops & events 

Book into upcoming events and workshops here. 

Downloadable resources

Can my business or organisation be involved? YES!

Sign your business up here! 

  • Cafes and restaurants could create a ‘special’ for the week using local ingredients, highlighting where they’ve been sourced, promoting on social media and their menu. We will promote businesses who participate.
  • Community gardens, art centres and other community organisations could run an event, workshop or host a local food meal during the week which we could collaborate with and cross-promote
  • Schools with kitchen gardens could focus on local produce during this week
  • Councils and NT Government could provide promotion and funding for us to run free workshops
  • Media outlets could partner with the project to promote in the lead up, use as a platform for education and content du ring the week and/or follow the journey of some participants. This could be done on radio, video, editorial or social media

Business who've signed up

  • Eva Valley Meats
  • Saffron Restaurant 
  • De La Plage
  • Rum Jungle Organics
  • Snapper Rocks
  • The Cavenagh Hotel
  • Nightcliff Friendly Grocers
  • Groove Cafe and Makers Space

How is this benefiting our community? 

  • Encourage the community to source more of their diet from local producers in the "Top End'' - Katherine to the Tiwi Islands
  • Highlighting the issue of food miles - most foods in Top End supermarkets come from at least 3000km away
  • Building community support for more sustainable and fairer food systems
  • Supporting local farmers and food producers
  • Connecting people to place and community
  • An opportunity to educate Territorians about the need for local food security

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FREE Inspired NT STEM Kit: The Science Behind Tropical Local Food

Let us know if you'd like one of the free kits (ideal for beginner gardeners). Includes information, seeds from Dundee Organics and a coir block to get your started.