vola DSWD’s soup kitchen open during holidays

MANILAvola, Philippines — The Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD)’s “Walang Gutom” Kitchen in Pasay City will remain open during the holidays.

DSWD Assistant Secretary Irene Dumlao said the soup kitchen would continue to provide food on Dec. 30 and 31, which are holidays.

The kitchen will be closed today and on Jan. 1, 2025.

“The Walang Gutom Kitchen is open to all families and individuals in street situations and those experiencing involuntary hunger,” Dumlao said.

Dumlao assured the public that the items being served by the DSWD kitchen are not “pagpag” or discarded food, but fresh, healthy and delicious meals.

Under the program, people from diverse backgrounds who were found in the streets were taken to the “Pag-Abot” processing center for initial assistance through the Walang Gutom Kitchen.

The kitchen was established to address involuntary hunger and reduce food wastage by turning donated surplus food from hotels, restaurants and organizations into hot, nutritious meals.

Launched on Dec. 16, the program adheres to the provisions of Republic Act 9803 or the Food Donation Act, in creating measures to encourage food donation for charitable purposes.

“That is our job and therefore, there should be no let up to show what really happened insofar as the confidential funds of the Office of the Vice President (OVP) and the Department of Education (DepEd) when she was still the secretary,” Acop said.

The kitchen is situated in Nasdake Buildingvola, FB Harrison in Pasay, which used to house a Philippine offshore gaming operator facility.