When you live in the desert, determination is second nature. So, when the people of Alice Springs wanted a boat race, they were determined to have one wherever they could. In doing so, they pulled together to create one of the most unique sporting events on the planet. Since 1962, generations have come to watch bottomless boats race on the empty Todd River. Powered by legs young and old, no boat is too whacky, with everything from bathtubs to Viking ships being raced. And at the Henley on Todd Regatta, everyone goes home feeling a winner, even the spectators.

Nestlé Professional has donated $5,000 to the Rotary Clubs of Alice Springs to help support local initiatives. Funds donated have been used to support:

• The Automatic External Defibrillator Project
• The John Hawkins Scholarship
• The sending of students to the National Youth Science Program
• Rotary's mental health project
• The supply of medical equipment to the Alice Springs Hospital Paediatric Ward
• The Alice Springs Senior Citizens Residence

In the green farming village of Boorowa, the sheep significantly outnumber the people. So when the locals wanted to honour their town and its Irish founders, picking a theme was easy. The Boorowa Irish Woolfest has been running now for over 20 years and is famous for the very entertaining Running of the Sheep, uniting the whole community. Thousands of people come together each year to enjoy the displays, music, markets, food and the running. The town once famous for its wool, is now known nationwide for its hospitality.

Nestlé Professional has donated $5,000 to the Boorowa Rotary Club to help support a local initiative. Funds donated have been used to provide new seating made from recycled materials for the town of Boorowa to enjoy, as well as making repairs to existing seating. The funds have also been used to plant additional native and deciduous trees around the seating.

They say it’s the little things that make a big difference. In Mandurah this is most certainly true. Every year this community in Western Australia celebrates the crabs that make their region even more special. Crab Fest draws over 100,000 people for cooking demonstrations, food, music, and of course, crabs. Even when the festival was sadly cancelled one year, the locals came together to support the small businesses who would have taken part, placing orders to keep their businesses going. The locals, it turns out, are even sweeter than the crabs.

Nestlé Professional has donated $5,000 to the Mandurah Rotary Club to help support a local initiative. Funds donated have been used to support the Mandurah Rotary Community Family Fun Day and Duck Race. This is a free annual community event that has become iconic to Mandurah. It brings together more than 10,000 people and celebrates family and community. The Duck Race, held as part of the day, raises funds for local community groups who support a wide range of services in Mandurah.

For nearly 40 years the whole community from the young to the young at heart, has come together for the annual Burnie 10 race in Tasmania. Taking part here means running, walking, or just coming out to support those who are; and just turning up makes you a winner. The race was introduced to put Burnie on the map, and it has, but for more reasons than the race. Those that join in will tell you it’s the passion of the locals that takes out first place every single year.

Nestlé Professional has donated $5,000 to the Rotary Clubs of Burnie to help support local initiatives. Funds donated have been used to help fund the installation of a much-needed BBQ and shelter, on the South Beach of Burnie, for the community and visitors alike to enjoy.

Charters Towers knows how important sport is for a community, and a parents meeting back in 1986 would change the lives of generations of kids to come.  The goal that night was to find ways to bring kids together, even if they lived hundreds of kilometres away from each other. And so, the Fit 4 Rural Futures Camp was born. This sports camp has everything from cricket to dancing and was designed to prove that sport is not only a great teacher but brings people together. The kids leave every year with new skills, full bellies and new mates.

Nestlé Professional has donated $5,000 to the Rotary Clubs around Charters Towers to help support local initiatives. The Townsville Rotary Club will use donated funds towards the Fuels for Schools programme, providing breakfast for hundreds of school kids. Funds donated have also been used by the Rotary Club of Townsville Saints to support the Lift the Lid Walk for Mental Health, held to raise awareness for the 4 million people who have mental health issues in Australia.

Geelong in South-Western Victoria covers a beautiful but vast area and its size can make it a daunting place for new arrivals. The one thing that has always united the community are the local AFL clubs – as the first club was founded in 1859, we do mean ‘always!’ Game day ensured that every kid, no matter their background, could speak the universal language of sport. The one rule that the whole community has always agreed on, is that everyone is welcome at any of the Geelong football clubs, especially the kids.

Nestlé Professional has donated $5,000 to the Rotary Clubs of Geelong to help support local initiatives. Funds donated have been used to help fund selected food services that provide food to disadvantaged people in the community. MILO tins will also be donated directly to the nominated organisations and schools in the region for their breakfast programs.

Celebrate Australia 2022 FAQs

Q. What is the campaign?

From the Burnie 10 in Tasmania, the Boorowa Irish Woolfest in New South Wales, to the Henley on Todd Regatta boat race in Alice Springs, Australian community spirit and stories fuel our nation.

Building on the success of the 2021 launch campaign and in recognition of the hardships endured across the country in recent times, Nestlé Professional and Rotary in Australia are partnering again to celebrate community spirit and local stories, via a new limited-edition range of Nescafé Blend 43 and Milo tins to keep fuelling our nation’s workplaces.

The ‘Celebrate Community Spirit’ collection by Nestlé Professional showcases six Australian towns that all have unique stories to tell.

From October 2022, three towns are featured on 1kg tins of Nescafé Blend 43; Boorowa, Mandurah and Alice Springs. Another three towns, Charters Towers, Burnie and Geelong, are displayed on 1.9kg tins of Milo. Each tin displays an illustration of an event or a unique community story that brings people together – like a cup of Nescafé Blend 43 or Milo does.

Nestlé Professional has extended its partnership with Rotary in Australia into 2022. Local Rotary Clubs in the six towns have been given grants by Nestlé Professional to invest in a community initiative important to each town. Each town has received $5,000.

Q. Why are Nescafé Blend 43 and Milo chosen for the limited-edition range?

Nescafé Blend 43 and Milo are uniquely Australian brands and have been enjoyed by Aussies for generations. Whether you’re a coffee lover or prefer a hot cup of Milo, these brands are engrained in community stories from young to old. Nescafé Blend 43 and Milo are raising a cuppa to communities around our nation with true Aussie community spirit.

Q. Why has Milo joined the 2022 ‘Celebrate Community Spirit’ collection?

Milo is an iconic Australian brand and has fuelled Australians for generations. Milo has joined the ‘Celebrate Community Spirit’ collection to celebrate the unique energy of Aussie communities in towns across Australia. After all, building a community takes energy.

Q. Where is Nescafé Blend 43 made?

Nescafé Blend 43 is made with Aussie community spirit, crafted by the Gympie factory in Queensland, made for Australians to enjoy.

In the past 12 months, the Gympie factory has produced almost 2 billion cups Nescafé Blend 43 and more than 350 million cups have been enjoyed by Aussie workers (in workplaces) across Australia.

Q. Where is Milo made?

Milo was invented in Smithtown NSW and has been made at the Smithtown factory since 1934. Created by Australians, for Australians, in the past 12 months, more than 40 million cups of Milo have been enjoyed out of home by Aussies across the country.

Q. How were the local towns chosen?

The ‘Celebrate Community Spirit’ collection by Nestlé Professional showcases six Australian towns that all have unique stories to tell.

Three towns are featured on 1kg tins of Nescafé Blend 43; Boorowa, Mandurah and Alice Springs. Another three towns, Charters Towers, Burnie and Geelong, are displayed on 1.9kg tins of Milo. Each tin displays a meaningful illustration of an event or story that is unique to each of the towns.

The following towns are displayed on the limited-edition range of Nescafé Blend 43 and Milo:

NESCAFÉ BLEND 43

Boorowa, New South Wales

•     Boorowa is featured on one of the three limited-edition 1kg Nescafé Blend 43 tins.
•     Boorowa is a farming village in the Hilltops Region in the southwest slopes of New South Wales.
•     With a colourful Irish heritage and wide-open landscapes on the Boorowa River, this town is one of the early Australian country towns.
•     In the green farming village of Boorowa, the sheep significantly outnumber the people and is world-renowned for its fine Merino wool.
•     The Boorowa tin depicts the annual Boorowa Irish Woolfest – an event that has now been running for over 20 years.
•     The Boorowa Irish Woolfest is famous for the Running of the Sheep event, uniting the whole community.
•     Thousands of people come together each year to enjoy the displays, music, markets, food and to watch the running.
•     This iconic event brings joy to the thousands of people who come together to bolster local businesses and celebrate what makes the town so special.
•     The town once famous for its wool, is now known nationwide for its hospitality and community stories.

Mandurah, Western Australia

•     Mandurah is featured on one of the three limited-edition 1kg Nescafé Blend 43 tins.
•     Mandurah is a coastal city in Western Australia. It’s the state’s second most populated city, with a population of approximately 117,000.
•     Mandurah’s Mediterranean climate and coastal lifestyle allow it to be known for its abundance of wildlife and migratory waterbirds, many which are found in the Peel-Harvey Estuary. It home to the native blue manna crab.
•     The Mandurah tin celebrates the crabs that make their region even more special, depicting the Mandurah Crab Fest.
•     This event draws in over 100,000 people for cooking demonstrations, food, music and, of course, crabs.
•     Even when the festival was cancelled recently due to COVID-19, the locals came together to support the small businesses who would have taken part, placing orders to keep their businesses going – the epitome of community spirit.

Alice Springs, Northern Territory

•     Alice Springs is featured on one of the three limited-edition 1kg Nescafé Blend 43 tins.
•     Alice Springs is the third-largest town in the Northern Territory and is situated roughly in Australia’s centre.
•     It has an urban population of 26,534 and accounts for approximately 10 per cent of the population of the Northern Territory.
•     Alice Springs is known for its beautiful surrounding region, including the MacDonnell Ranges, Kings Canyon and Uluru Kata Tjuta National Park.
•     When you live in the desert, determination is second nature. So, when the people of Alice Springs wanted a boat race, they were determined to have one wherever they could – thus the iconic Henley on Todd Regatta bottomless boat race was born.
•     The Alice Springs Nescafé Blend 43 tin depicts the Henley on Todd Regatta - one of the most unique sporting events on the planet.
•     Since 1962, generations have come to watch bottomless boats race on the empty Todd River.
•     Powered by legs young and old, no boat is too whacky, with everything from bathtubs to Viking ships being raced.
•     Community spirit is paramount at the Henley on Todd Regatta; everyone goes home feeling a winner, even the spectators.

MILO

Charters Towers, Queensland

•     Charters Towers is featured on one of the three limited-edition 1.9kg Milo tins.
•     Charters Towers is a rural town in the Charters Towers Region of Queensland.
•     The town’s population boomed in the last quarter of the 19th century as the rich gold deposits under the city developed, with a population of 8,120 being recorded in the 2016 census.
•     Charters Towers is nicknamed ‘The World’, with an abundance of early days museums, tours and colonial architecture depicting the past.
•     The Charters Towers tin depicts the Fit 4 Rural Futures Camp – an iconic sports camp. The Camp was chosen as it unites kids from the outback and remote areas across north-west Queensland to come together in the spirit of sport.
•     Fit 4 Rural Futures Camp was born from a 1986 meeting of parents who shared the goal of bringing kids together, even if they lived hundreds of kilometres away from each other.
•     The sports camp has everything, from cricket to dancing, and was designed to prove that sport is not only a great teacher but brings people together. It gives kids the chance to experience teamwork, sporting achievements and socialisation that is generally only available to students in rural schools.

Geelong, Victoria

•     Geelong is featured on one of the three limited-edition 1.9kg Milo tins.
•     Geelong is a port city southwest of Melbourne in the state of Victoria. It is the second largest Victorian city, only behind Melbourne.
•     Located South-west of Melbourne, the city is known for its waterfront with a curved art deco boardwalk and sea bath.
•     Geelong is known as the ‘Gateway City’ due to its location, feeding into surrounding regions such as Ballarat, Torquay and even the Great Ocean Road.
•     The Geelong tin depicts an AFL match – the local sport that has always united the community.
•     With the Geelong Football Club established in 1859 as one of the first AFL teams in history, community sport is engrained in the town’s DNA.
•     The town of Geelong has been a pioneer in the evolution of AFWL, and this community spirit is featured on the limited-edition Geelong Milo tins.
•     This illustration was chosen as in Geelong, one rule that the whole community has always agreed upon is that everyone at any age is welcome in community sport.
•     Bringing the town together, game days have always ensured that every kid, no matter their background, could speak the universal language of sport.
•     Demonstrating the true togetherness of the city, the community has always enforced the rule that everyone is welcome at any of the Geelong football clubs, especially the kids.

Burnie, Tasmania

•     The town of Burnie is featured on one of the three limited-edition 1.9kg Milo tins.
•     Burnie is a port city on the north-west coast of Tasmania. Originally named Emu Bay, it was renamed in the early 1840s.
•     As of 2019, Burnie had an urban population of 19,550.
•     The key industries within Burnie are heavy manufacturing, forestry and farming.
•     Burnie is known for having the largest general cargo port in Australia and for its forestry industry.
•     The Burnie tin depicts the annual Burnie10 marathon. Including a 10km and 5km road race, this event was chosen as it unites the thousands of people who come together to bolster local businesses, and celebrates the energy of the community which makes Burnie so special.
•     This race has taken place for nearly 40 years, bringing the whole community together from the young to the young at heart.
•     Taking part here means running, walking or just coming out to support those who are.
•     The race was introduced to put Burnie on the map – and fuelled by the passion of the locals.

What is Rotary in Australia?

With more than 1,000 Clubs and 25,000 members, Rotary members in Australia are ‘people of action’ who support an array of local community service initiatives.

Each year, members contribute funding and volunteer hours to deliver life-changing, sustainable projects to improve health, support education, protect the environment and alleviate poverty - in their communities and around the world.

Through Rotary’s areas of focus, we promote peace, fight disease, provide clean water, save mothers and children, support education, and grow local economies.

Q. How Is this campaign different from last year?

In 2022, the ‘Celebrate Community Spirit’ collection by Nestlé Professional has included iconic Australian brand, Milo. Six new towns are featured in this collection with each area’s Rotary Club receiving a $5,000 donation.

The 2022 iteration of the collection showcases new unique community stories and events which make each town special.

Q. Which tins were featured last year?

In 2021, six towns that each demonstrated unique community spirit were featured on a limited-edition range of Nescafé Blend 43. The towns illustrated were Mallacoota, Broken Hill, Toowoomba, Busselton, Willunga and Strahan. Learn more at www.nestleprofessional.com.au/celebrateaustralia

Q. How is Nestlé Professional supporting the chosen towns?

Nestlé Professional has provided $5,000 grants to the local Rotary Clubs in each of the six Aussie towns featured in this campaign.

These grants will be used to invest in a community initiative important to each town. These initiatives include providing food supplies in disadvantaged communities in Geelong, supporting a project supplying medical equipment to the Alice Springs Hospital Paediatric Ward, and a Fuels for Schools program in Townsville - providing breakfast for hundreds of young students who go to school on an empty stomach.

Alongside the donation, Nestlé Professional has gifted each Rotary Club limited-edition tins affiliated to each town, which the Club will sell or donate to the local community, with any profits retained by the Club.

This initiative builds on the partnership between Nestlé Professional and Rotary in Australia, and continues to celebrate and support the people and community spirit of Australia. The tins will also leave a long-lasting keepsake for the community through the unique Nescafé Blend 43 and Milo tin art.

Q. What will the donations to each Club be used for?

Alice Springs:

The Rotary Club of Alice Springs will use the funds for both its Automatic External Defibrillator Project its John Hawkins Scholarship.

The Rotary Club of Alice Springs Mbantua will use the funds to send students to the National Youth Science Program and to help support their Mental Health Project.

The Rotary Club of Stuart will use the funds to help supply medical equipment to the Alice Springs Hospital Paediatric Ward.

Boorowa:

The donation will be used to build seats in popular walking tracks around town made from recycled materials to help strengthen areas of the Boorowa community.

Burnie:

The donation will help fund a new barbecue and shelter on the South Beach of Burnie as a much-needed facility in the community.

Geelong:

The donation will be used to support community services that provide food to disadvantaged residents of Geelong, and help address food insecurity in the region.

Mandurah:

The funds will be used to support the Mandurah Rotary Community Family Fun Day and Duck Race. This is a free community event that has become iconic to Mandurah and is held on Easter Saturday. It brings together more than 10,000 people and celebrates family and community. The Duck Race, held as part of the day, raises funds for local community groups that support a wide range of services in Mandurah.

Charters Towers:

The Townsville Rotary Club will use the grant to help fund the Fuels for Schools program. This program provides breakfast for hundreds of school kids in the region who go to school on an empty stomach.

The Rotary Club of Townsville will donate the funds to the Townsville Saints Lift the Lid Walk for Mental Health taking place on 9th October 2022, raising funds for mental health.

Q. Where can I buy the product?

The ‘Celebrate Community Spirit’ collection will be available from October 2022. A variety of the tins of Nescafé Blend 43 and Milo featuring the six Aussie towns are available to buy from wholesale office and foodservice distributors including Bidfood, Countrywide, PFD, Campbells, Winc, Officeworks, COS and Blackwoods.

Q. How much do the tins cost?

Nescafé Blend 43 1kg RRP $55; Milo 1.9kg RRP $30.

Q. Why can’t I buy the product at my local supermarket?

The ‘Celebrate Community Spirit’ collection will not be available in supermarkets and are available at wholesale office and foodservice distributors.

The 1kg and 1.9kg tin size is designed to be shared at workplaces, aged care residencies, schools, hospitals, cafes, hotels and pubs and clubs across the country.

Local residents of the six selected towns can purchase a tin featuring their local town from their local Rotary Club, with all profits retained by the Club.

Q. Where can I find a specific tin?

From October 2022, mixed cases of the 1kg tins of Nescafé Blend 43 and 1.9kg tins of Milo are supplied to wholesale office and foodservice distributors including Bidfood, NAFDA, Countrywide, PFD, Campbells, Winc and Blackwoods. If you can’t get your hands on the tin that you are after, try asking your local supplier to see if they have any more coming in.

If you are in one of the six selected towns, reach out to your local Rotary Club to purchase your town name tin.