Whatshot
The Pink Room Foundation pioneers innovative project to feed thousands of hungry children in KZN
The Pink Room Foundation pioneers innovative project to feed thousands of hungry children in KZN
A first-of-its-kind school nutrition initiative in Kwa Zulu-Natal began with a former teacher preparing sandwiches in her kitchen for hungry pupils.
Almost two years later, Cristine Panday's Pink RoomFoundation - which has delivered 107 000 sandwiches to seven schools and five communities in Durban - will be operating from a multi-million Rand kitchen where a proven innovative meal and production model will provide a variety of nutritious meals to schoolchildren.
Vegetables and meat meals will be prepared, blast chilled, packed and frozen, ready for distribution to schools where it will be heated for lunch.
TheR2.5-million Pink Kitchen, which can produce 5000 meals a day, has launched in Mount Edgecombe, north of Durban.
"I started with just 10 loaves of bread a day. When I saw the need growing, I approached my husband, Akash Panday, who is the MD of Skyworth Digital MEA and Group CEO of QVWI. He immediately got behind the initiative with Skyworth funding the foundation and the entirePink Kitchen."
"I wanted to provide a hot nutritious meal to the children. They couldn't have sandwiches every day. I wanted them to have a variety of balanced meals.I realised I needed a kitchen and concept to enable me to do this."
A timely introduction to the renowned Cipla Foundation then helped make Panday's dream of building the Pink Kitchen a reality.The Cipla Foundation introduced Panday to PebblesProject Kitchen's concept, which has been successful in theWestern Cape.
Skyworth has also pledged R5-million over five years to the foundation. The pledge has been endorsed by Skyworth's global head office.
The first meals produced from the foundation's new kitchen will be delivered in the first week of the new school year on 22 January 2024.
"The Cipla Foundation has a vision for containers to be stationed at these schools with solar powered systems to heat these meals. Cipla will help us execute it. We have also acquired two more partners recently, which are Izinga Assist and Skyworth's recently launched brand of consumer products, QVWI."
"ThePink Kitchen is a place that provides hope and a brighter future for so many hungry children," added Panday.

