Food is not just a basic necessity but a fundamental human right. Nutritious food is essential for people of all ages, especially children and growing adults, to maintain good health and an active life. It plays a significant role in their physical, cognitive and emotional development. We consider it our responsibility to help disadvantaged communities have easy access to food and enable them to live with dignity and hope.
Due to various reasons like economic inequality, climatic changes, urban poverty and civil unrest, there is a rise in food insecurity across the globe. This has resulted in millions of people going to bed hungry. Free food distribution programs will greatly impact their lives and bring about a significant transformation in society.
Our school lunch feeding program was initiated in the year 2000 under the name The Akshaya Patra Foundation. Beginning in a humble way by feeding just over a thousand children studying in government schools in the vicinity of ISKCON Bangalore temple in India, Akshaya Patra has grown over the years to become one of the world’s largest not-for-profit-run school lunch program. The organisation is currently feeding more than 2.2 million children everyday across India.
Self4Society, a social welfare app was introduced in 2018 by the Government of India for professionals and organisations to come together to contribute to various causes. During the launch, Hon’ble Prime Minister of India, Narendra Modi, appreciated Akshaya Patra for its service to society and said, “Akshaya Patra is a social start-up, which has turned into a movement that provides food to school children”. He personally served the 3 billionth meal in Vrindavan in 2019.
He also congratulated the Akshaya Patra team during the commemoration of the milestone of serving 4 billion meals in 2024 and said, “It is with immense pride and joy that I congratulate the entire team of The Akshaya Patra Foundation on the remarkable milestone of serving four billion meals. This achievement stands as a testament to an unwavering commitment to eradicate hunger and provide nourishment to humanity.”
Encouraged by the overwhelming success of the Akshaya Patra initiative, the World Food Movement came into existence. We are serving in cities like New Jersey, New York and Washington D.C. and will gradually extend the program to other parts of the country.
Our food assistance programs are currently focusing on feeding students in community colleges and people in homeless shelters.
