CEQ and ALPA strike deal to grow First Nations nutrition jobs in remote Queensland

Community Enterprise Queensland (CEQ) and Arnhem Land Progress Aboriginal Corporation (ALPA) have signed a new agreement to expand a program designed to improve food security and build a local First Nations nutrition workforce in remote north Queensland.

The partnership will deliver ALPA’s “Good Food People” model through CEQ’s store network, positioning community-run retail outlets as hubs for practical health promotion and everyday access to healthier options. CEQ says the agreement was signed in Cairns on Thursday night.

Under the arrangement, CEQ will receive $5.88 million over three years through the Australian Government’s National Indigenous Australians Agency (NIAA) Food Security and Nutrition Workforce Program. The funding is intended to recruit and train locally employed “Good Food People”, supported by qualified nutritionists who provide mentoring, education and on-the-job guidance.

CEQ chief executive Michael Dykes said community stores are central to what people can buy and eat in remote towns and islands. “Our stores are at the heart of the communities we serve, and they play a vital role in shaping access to healthy food” he said.

ALPA chief executive Alastair King said the program was developed within ALPA’s remote store operations and has grown over time. He said the partnership with CEQ aimed to support “good food” through “local people, for local people” across remote communities.

CEQ says the first stage will recruit and train seven Good Food People, backed by a dedicated nutritionist, before scaling up. The organisation says its longer-term target is 35 Good Food People and three nutritionists employed by 2028.

The roles are expected to focus on in-store, community-facing work: supporting nutrition education, promoting healthier food choices, strengthening fresh food departments and improving takeaway and café offerings where stores provide prepared meals.

The deal sits within a broader federal push to reduce the price and improve the availability of food in remote First Nations communities, where higher operating costs (including freight and repairs) are a persistent pressure on store prices. The NIAA says recent implementation plans under the National Agreement on Closing the Gap include an in‑store nutrition workforce alongside measures such as subsidised “low-cost essentials” in participating remote stores.

CEQ is a not-for-profit and says it operates 31 stores across the Torres Strait, Cape York Peninsula, Doomadgee and Palm Island. It says 90 per cent of its remote workforce identifies as Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander.

“The Albanese Labor Government is committed to improving food security in remote communities because we know it leads to better health outcomes for First Nations people” said Minister for Indigenous Australians, Senator Malarndirri McCarthy