Sysco LABS extends its global hunger relief effort in Sri Lanka

Sysco’s Sri Lanka arm donates more than 12,000 warm meals

This year, communities around the country have faced financial and health and safety issues due to the COVID-19 global pandemic. To minimize the number of people who would go hungry during the festive season, Sysco LABS Sri Lanka introduced the “Share a meal. Share a moment” initiative which would seek to provide warm meals, prepared in clean kitchens following health and safety guidelines to communities in need – in and around Colombo. The company initially pledged to donate 10,000 warm meals by December 31, 2020. However, due to an overwhelming response from its associates – a total of more than 12,000 warm meals were donated by the end of the project.

To ensure that meals were donated to those who really needed it, Sysco LABS sought the support of two volunteer groups who were experienced in the area; the Robin Hood Army and Ghedora Connects are two well-known charity organizations which are focused on hunger relief within the country and have important information and expertise about where the meals were most needed. The Rotaract club of Achievers Lanka Business School also came on board as volunteers to aid the charity organizations’ efforts to distribute as many meals as possible. Meals were prepared following all health and safety guidelines by Curries Kitchen and Curry Pot restaurants in Colombo.

Shanil Fernando, Managing Director – Sri Lanka and SVP Engineering said that the project was an extension of Sysco’s hunger relief efforts across the global locations they operate, noting that Sysco donated 40 million meals across eight countries as part of its COVID-19 response.