Akshaya Patra looks at 50,000 meals a day

The foundation’s upgraded kitchen promises more hygienic food

With the promise of cleaner and hygienic food, the Akshaya Patra Foundation, which supplies mid-day meals for 147 government schools in the district, will open its upgraded kitchen here on Tuesday.

Addressing presspersons on Monday, Karunya Sagar Dasa, president of the Foundation in the city, said the changes to their kitchen include granite flooring, more automation in cooking and handling of food, among others. Though this won’t augment the 23,000 meals-a-day capacity of the kitchen, the changes would help the kitchen conform to national standards of food safety, he said.

The upgradation is a part of the larger plan for the Foundation to aim for 50,000 meals a day. “The current kitchen is just 3,000 square feet and has reached its saturation point. We will need to get land for a bigger kitchen if our goal is to be met,” said Mr. Sagar.

The limitation of the current kitchen sees just one government school in Puttur being added to the roster of the Foundation which has been functioning in the district since 2006.

On Tuesday, B. Ramanath Rai, Minister for Forests, Ecology and Environment, will flag off a new vehicle for transportation of food as well as throw open the upgraded (phase II) kitchen. A total of 10 toppers and meritorious students would also be handed awards on the occasion, said the organisation.