Refugee Catering expands in Wellington

15 June 2017

Pomegranate Kitchen, a Wellington catering enterprise that employs former refugees as cooks, has a new kitchen, more cooks and new Board members too.

Pomegranate Kitchen works with former refugee cooks so they learn how to work in a commercial kitchen. A social enterprise, Pomegranate Kitchen launched its delivered lunch and catering services in Wellington late last year. Beginning with five cooks, they now employ seven women, from Syria, Afghanistan, Iran, Iraq and Ethiopia.

On World Refugee Day 2017, Pomegranate Kitchen will move into a kitchen at Mojo Coffee on Bond St. Co-founder and General Manager Rebecca Stewart says: “Mojo Coffee have offered us a wonderful space to rent so we can expand our business. The cooks can’t wait to have our own kitchen and be able to share more of the food from their home countries with Wellingtonians. It means we can take on the really big corporate jobs as well as individual lunches, weddings, parties and regular business catering”.

Another key development is two new Board members for the enterprise. Pomegranate Kitchen is a charitable trust which makes money to support its work, and is governed by a Board. Joining Scott Barrett (Beach House Kiosk) and Hawa Fitzgerald (New Zealand Red Cross) is Alex Hannant, CEO of Akina Foundation, and Tan Hunyh of Pledgeme. Alex Hannant brings a wealth of social enterprise and leadership experience to the Board. Tan Hunyh brings business and marketing expertise, as well as being from a refugee background himself. Board Chair and Co-founder Ange Wither says: ‘Our two new Board members round out the experience needed to govern Pomegranate Kitchen, and to guide the business as it grows”.

To celebrate World Refugee Day and their new kitchen, Pomegranate Kitchen will be offering food specials throughout the week of 19-25 June, and will be at the World Refugee Day Red Cross event in Mungavin Hall in Porirua on 24th June. Find them at www.pomegranate.org.nz.

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