Harvest Cafe owner Chris Ringrose giving free soup to Bathurst locals

Bathurst's Harvest Cafe & Store is giving back to the community, with free containers of soup available for anyone in need.

As the cost of living continues to rise, and electricity prices set to increase by a quarter in some areas from July 1, many residents are facing financial hardship.

Cafe owner Chris Ringrose said it's only a small gesture, but if they can provide one person or family with a stress-free meal then it's worth it.

"Everyone's doing it tough at the moment, businesses, people, everyone in general with everything going on at the moment, it's not easy," he said.

"So we just made a stack of soup that people can come and collect, no questions asked.

"They can just come and grab a tub of soup for anyone in the community, or for themselves, or anyone who reaches out to us we can deliver it to their house."

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The cafe is even going the extra mile by making sure the soups are nice and healthy - for example the ginger and carrot flavour - to provide sustenance during the flu season.

Harvest is not the only place in Bathurst people can seek a warm meal, with Hope Church, the local StreetHeart organisation and Bathurst Uniting Support Services (BUSS) all providing for those in need.

And as well as providing one-litre tubs of soup for the community, Harvest Cafe also donates meals to the other charities in the community who are helping those residents in need.

Mr Ringrose said even he is feeling the financial pressures from a business perspective.

"Especially with the way interest rates are going, the housing market is going, the cost of goods ... everything is going up," he said.

"Just in the scheme of it, eggs have gone up 25 percent since two years ago, milk's gone up 12 percent, bread's going up as well and flour.

"The basic standard of living is going up and it's not easy for anyone, so it's just about trying to support the community when we can."

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