22 Years of Making Garma Possible
For more than two decades, Garma has been one of Australia’s most significant celebrations of Yolŋu culture, bringing together Indigenous leaders, industry, government and communities. Sodexo’s long-standing partnership with the Yothu Yindi Foundation reflects our commitment to reconciliation and the important role our people play in supporting events that bring communities together.
This year, 68 Sodexo team members helped deliver the 4-day festival, providing cooking, facility cleaning and grounds maintenance. Together, the team served more than 30,000 meals to over 8,500 people.
And the work started well before the first meal was served.
On day one, our teams worked through the night to get everything ready for the festival. Across the four days, they also supported six VIP events, including one where our kitchen crew worked alongside celebrity chef Jimmy Shu to serve 675 guests in around 20 minutes.
A lot of food. A lot of teamwork.
Feeding thousands of people takes plenty of preparation. Over the four days, the team worked through:
- 375kg of bacon
- 1,400kg of chicken
- 1,200kg of potatoes
- 200kg of mushrooms
- 6,000kg of protein
- 320kg of baked beans
- 600kg of scrambled eggs
- 1,400kg of watermelon
But Garma wasn’t only remembered for the food.
Sometimes it’s a smile and service excellence that make a lasting impression. The cleaning team left handwritten notes of encouragement and affirmations on post-it notes in the toilet blocks to spread joy and positivity. The notes quickly became a talking point around the festival and people began leaving replies of their own, turning a simple idea into connection between strangers.
“We laughed, we sang, we stretched, and we engaged our customers with joy and energy, and worked bloody hard. we made great new friends. I have a new appreciation for our frontline staff now.”
– Duane Redden, National Indigenous Supplier Procurement Manager
The people behind the numbers
Events like Garma take a huge amount of work behind the scenes. Long hours, early starts, overnight preparation and plenty of moving parts all come together to make the experience work for everyone attending.
A big thank you our Garma event team this year who proudly represented Sodexo and made the difference to guests and the local Yolŋu community.
For 22 years, our people have helped make Garma possible. This year’s event was another reminder that the strength of Sodexo isn’t measured only by the services we provide, but by the care, commitment and connection our teams bring to every community they support.
