Katy Barfield
About
Katy led SecondBite as CEO from 2006 to 2012. Together with founders Ian and Simone Carson, Katy led SecondBite through a period of intense growth and expansion on an unprecedented scale, from collecting around 600kg of fresh produce in 2005 to redistributing over two million kilograms in 2012 to 400+ community food programs in Victoria, Tasmania, Queensland, WA and NSW.
Katy left her position as CEO in September 2012 to develop and establish Spade & Barrow, a social business that aims to purchase Natures Grade produce (think wonky carrots and pink lady apples that are slightly the wrong shade of pink) and distribute it wholesale to the public sector, food enterprises and community organisations. Her aim is to put value back into the food system by compensating farmers fairly for fabulous fresh produce that would otherwise not be harvested, whilst providing affordable fresh nutritious food wholesale to the public and community sector.
Katy joined the non-profit sector18 years ago working for Children in Crisis with the Duchess of York. She worked for SCOPE, Colon Cancer Concern, Trinity Hospice and led a fundraising campaign for the relief of Poverty for Children in Afghanistan that funded a Street Child clinic for 3 years. Katy was also the Marketing Director of Corporate Catering Company, then the largest independent pub company in SE England. On arrival in Australia in 1981, Katy started up Eye Marketing, creating identities for bars and clubs in Melbourne and owned her own hospitality venue where she was constantly appalled at the waste.
Katy was awarded the Tattersall’s Enterprise & Achievement Award in July 2008 and was selected by The Age as one of Melbourne’s 100 Most Influential people. SecondBite received the Lord Mayor’s Melbourne Award 2008 for Contribution to Community and the 2010 Premier’s Sustainability Award, Office for Community Development’s Innovation Award and prestigious 2010 Banksia Community Award. In 2011, Katy was awarded the Stanford Australia Foundation’s Scholarship for Not for Profit Leaders and completed Stanford University’s Executive Program in Social Entrepreneurship. Katy sits on the SecondBite Board, the Fundraising committee and the Corporate Partnerships Committees, and is a Director of Spade & Barrow.
