Mai Kai is growing a local, inclusive food system that enhances whānau health and wellbeing.

Become a Mai Kai member now!

Mai Kai is growing a local, inclusive food system that enhances whānau health and wellbeing.

How does Mai Kai work?

  • Become a member

    Sign up to receive the grocery list and make payment

  • Gather

    Meet at your local community venue

  • Set-up

    Unpack the truck and set up Mai Kai

  • Pack Groceries

    Pack your kai into your own packaging

  • Clean-up

    Reset the space and reload the truck

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  • Every fortnight, Mai Kai curates a Kai box...

    Mai Kai members will receive a grocery list, make their selections, and arrange their own jars, containers and packaging to keep our experience as low impact on the environment as possible. On pack-out day, we meet at a local venue, learn together through a short kai cooking or growing demo, and then pack our own boxes. Everyone helps with set-up and pack-down, making it a shared experience that connects us to our food, our community, and the whenua.

    Fortnightly → Pre-Select and confirm → BYO Packaging → Attend → Connect, Learn & Share → Pack Your Box → Pitch-In, Pack Up → Go & Nourish

    See example grocery lists here!

  • Nau Mai! Sign up for a one off trial Mai Kai session here 

Mai Kai Foundational Kaupapa Mai Kai Foundational Values

  • Ki uta ki tai.

    From the mountains to the sea.

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  • He kai ora, he kai ngākau mō te tangata, he kai aroha mō te whenua.

    Food with life force, is nurturing food for our people, and for our earth.

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  • Hononga ki te whenua te mana Māori, te manaaki tangata, te mana māra.

    Just as hospitality is constant, we need the garden to be constant.

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  • He kai kei Aku ringa.

    There is food at the end of my hands.

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  • Nāku te rourou, nāu te rourou.

    Sharing the food baskets.

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  • He kai he rongoa, he rongoa he kai.

    Food as medicine, medicine as food.

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About

Mai Kai is a community-led social enterprise in Hawke’s Bay dedicated to strengthening local food systems through a kaupapa Māori approach. We empower whānau to grow, cook, and access nutritious kai, fostering resilience, environmental sustainability, and cultural revitalisation.

At the heart of Mai Kai is the belief that kai is not just sustenance—it’s a connection to whenua and a key driver of community, whānau and individual wellbeing.

Through affordable kai boxes, practical cooking and gardening education as well as support for local food enterprises, we are building a future where whānau have the knowledge and resources to nourish themselves and their communities.

Find Out More

Mai (particle) - This way, indicates direction to the speaker.

Kai (noun) Food / Meal (verb) - to eat, consume, drink

What it means to join Mai Kai?

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Dollars redirected from supermarkets into the local economy
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Packets of single-use plastic waste we avoided creating

What Our Members Say

“Love having the independence away from big chain supermarkets and having the costs brought down by being a collective”

“Amazing standard of freshness and quality that is significantly better than the supermarket”.

“I feel the variety and freshness is great and for amount paid, it is much more cost effective than shopping at supermarket”.

“The fruit and vegetables are so fresh and taste amazing. A lot better than other sources”.

“We feel the kai box was good value for money in terms of the quality, quantity, and variety of food provided”.

“It feels empowering and exciting to be part of a movement like this, I am looking forward to learning more and I really hope it becomes a great success”.

“Really enjoy experience of providing own packaging and the ethos of food club overall”.

“It changed how we eat, how we shop for kai and has reduced food waste in our house. Reduced sugar intake dramatically.”

“Really enjoy experience of providing own packaging and the ethos of food club overall”.

“Everything is awesome quality. Access to kai that is currently very expensive is probably stand out i.e. olive oil, organic chicken. Everything has been top quality.”