Foodstuffs North Island has teamed up with Waiariki Whānau Mentoring Trust to open a social supermarket in Whakatāne.

Trust chief executive Waata Heathcote says Whare Āio on The Strand will be run by the trust with support from Foodstuff’s social supermarket team and New World Whakatāne, which will help to keep the shelves full and provide retail expertise.

It expects to support about 13,000 people in the first year, using a points system to provide food and grocery products at low or no cost.

Mr Heathcote says the aim is to provide a level of food security to the working poor who can’t access support from the Ministry of Social Development.

Waiariki Whanau Mentoring Trust also provides employment training, education, prison in-reach, reintegration, peer support, nursing, mental health, addiction, alcohol and drugs teams.

The supermarket opens next Tuesday.