Workshops, picks, and plans: A round-up of recent Fruit Share Adelaide activities
It has been a productive few months at Fruit Share Adelaide (FSA). We’ve been busy with community harvests, running practical workshops, and building stronger partnerships with local councils, all while continuing to rescue fruit and support food relief organisations across the city.
Here is a look at what we’ve been working on recently.
Pitching our concept and partnering with councils
In May, we were privileged to participate in the Circular Impact Accelerator, funded by Green Industries SA and delivered by Collab4Good. It was a great opportunity to hear about and learn from other ventures, all dedicated to creating a circular economy in South Australia. We did not win, but we came away even more inspired to continue our mission. Our heartiest congratulations to the winning ventures!
Our Founder Brett presenting at the Circular Impact Accelerator Pitch Night
We recently collaborated with the City of Charles Sturt to organise a harvest of public fruit trees along McDonnell Avenue and Jervois Avenue in West Hindmarsh. These mostly lemon and orange trees often go unharvested, so we are working to ensure their fruit is put to good use. Our first harvest was at the start of August, with the fruit going to OzHarvest, but there was plenty of fruit for residents to enjoy too.
Our founder, Brett Dunstone, will also be presenting at a Chatty Cafe event hosted by the City of Holdfast Bay, sharing more about FSA’s mission and how community members can get involved. We also ran a stall at the Environment Expo organised by the City of Burnside, and it was a great opportunity to raise awareness about food rescue.
Our stall at the Burnside Environment Expo
We continue to receive valuable support from the City of Onkaparinga and City of Mitcham, who played a key role in helping establish FSA through early grants and engagement opportunities. We are grateful for their continued involvement and look forward to deepening our collaboration with councils across Adelaide.
Winter pruning workshops
As part of our focus on sustainable urban harvesting, we’ve been running winter pruning workshops to support backyard growers in maintaining healthy, productive fruit trees. These sessions offer practical knowledge around tree care and long-term fruit yield.
In June, we held a successful workshop at Sellicks HiIl, led by Amanda Fleming of Willunga Fruit Tree Pruning. Participants gained hands-on experience with pruning tools and techniques, as well as guidance on timing and maintenance. The session wrapped up with a live demonstration and Q&A. We followed this up with two more workshops - at Garden Goodness in Smithfield, led by Peter Heidenreich of Australian Worm Firm; and at Mylor once more led by Amanda.
Pruning workshop in Sellicks Hill
Since the workshops began in 2024, we’ve had over 150 participants, and we are looking to expand this work further as part of our broader education and engagement efforts.
Rescue, distribution, and what’s next
Since our first harvest in January 2024, FSA has rescued more than 24,000kg of fruit across over 200 harvests. This work has been made possible by the efforts of over 100 volunteers and the generosity of fruit tree owners who have shared their surplus.
The fruit we collected has been distributed to more than 50 community organisations, helping improve access to fresh, healthy produce for people doing it tough.
Looking ahead, we are focused on scaling up – increasing the number of harvests, strengthening local partnerships, and offering more support to backyard growers. With continued community involvement and council support, we are optimistic about the impact we can achieve together
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