AUSTRALIA’S first social enterprise bakery, The Bread & Butter Project, started out a decade ago as a vision by founders of Bourke Street Bakery, Paul Allam and Jessica Grynberg.
As of today, the Sydney-based wholesale bakery operates two concession stores in Woolworths Metro, and can also be found on the shelves at other participating Woolworths Metro and Harris Farm stores.
The bakery which initially supplied to cafes and restaurants came on board as a Woolworths supplier in April 2020 after many of the restaurants and cafes they supplied to were temporarily closed due to the COVID-19 lockdowns. From their Marrickville depot, the team at The Bread & Butter Project supplies Metro stores directly with fresh bread and pastries.
This partnership with the major supermarket chain has allowed the enterprise to keep its doors open and to continue to provide training and employment pathways for refugees and asylum seekers in Australia.
Since 2013, The Bread & Butter Project has provided refugees and asylum seekers with necessary training in order to boost their prospects of successful resettlement, employment and a strong sense of belonging.
This idea for the social enterprise came to Paul and Jessica in 2011 after teaching a group of refugee women at an orphanage on the Thai-Burmese border how to bake bread, and helping them establish a social business to support themselves and the orphanage.
On his return home to Australia, Paul shared his vision with his partner at Bourke Street Bakery, David McGuinness and the two decided to set up a social enterprise bakery to empower the least privileged in the community.
In honour of this, the company invests one hundred percent of their profits into providing opportunities for people seeking refuge and asylum and who aspire to become bakers. All profits made from the Erskineville and Surry Hills Metro stores, will also go towards the training programs.
Trainees of the program undertake a six-to-eight-month traineeship, which includes on the job bakery training, TAFE accreditation, English language tutoring and job readiness support. After graduation, The Bread & Butter Project supports trainees to secure employment with like-minded organisations.
So far, the bakery has had 45 professional artisan bakers graduate and move into employment in Australia’s hospitality industry, with the bakery having the capacity for up to 30 new trainee bakers each year.
Trainees have come from Afghanistan, Iran, Iraq, Myanmar, Sierra Leone, Syria, Pakistan, Fiji, Thailand and Sri Lanka to name just a few countries.
You cn find out more online, including ordering their delicious products. You can also see the Bread & Butter Project’s in-store bakery at Woolworths Metro North Turramurra and buy fresh baked breads.