REAL estate agent R. Sri Krsna and his wife, J. Sri Deviy, ran a “soup kitchen” preparing packed meals and distributing them to the homeless around the Klang Valley for nine years.

But over the years, they began to see more and more charitable groups doing the same. While this was a positive development, they were also alarmed at news that Malaysians were wasting more than 15,000 tonnes of food a day.

It was time to take a different approach, the couple thought, one that met the needs of the poor, while preventing food wastage.

In July, Krsna and Deviy started the non-profit Malaysia Agathiyar Universal Mission organisation (AUM).

The plan was to collect excess food from people’s homes, especially after parties and festive gatherings, pack the food and distribute them to the needy.

“My wife and I and several close friends used to buy ingredients to cook and distribute to people living on the streets in the Klang Valley.

“We began to realise, however, that they were receiving a lot of food from other soup kitchen groups and, in fact, food was going to waste.

“So we began to shift our thinking to how we can help poor families living in low-cost public housing (Projek Perumahan Rakyat or PPR) flats. There are many who can’t afford to prepare a single decent meal a day,” Krsna told The Malaysian Insight.

He said he witnessed how some families can only eat rice once a week. There are also some who go to bed early, at 7pm, to prevent their children from complaining of hunger from missing dinner.

“We started out by cooking food and distributing it about twice a week. We sent the food to their homes in the flats. They would always ask, are you bringing food tomorrow, too?”

One day in July, with the help of about 10 volunteers, AUM started to spread the message about their new plan to engage the cooperation of the public who host parties or big events with food.

Within 24 hours, they received calls from more than 100 people who said they wanted to help.

A network of volunteers were created and operating procedures set in place. The host of a party or event is to call AUM and inform the group about excess food that they’re willing to give away.

“Once we receive the call, we will mobilise our volunteers to the event location and pack the extra food before distributing to needy families.

“We check whether the food is still in good condition and suitable for consumption and estimate the number of packs that can be prepared. We have to ensure distribution is done quickly or the food will go bad.

“Normally, we ensure that the food reaches the needy families within an hour from the phone call we receive,” Krsna said.

Because the message is spread by word of mouth, coordination with the host can get a little tricky at times. Krsna said AUM prefers to be informed by the host before 9pm, but there are still those who only call him much later.

Since launching their new effort in July, AUM has collected and distributed food around the Klang Valley and even Seremban. The food is distributed to the poor within the same area it is collected to ensure freshness.

It manages between 50 and 1,000 packets a day from excess food from parties and events alone, he said.

He urged hosts and event organisers willing to donate excess food to inform AUM of their intention to hold a gathering earlier, at least 48 hours before the party, so that volunteers can be ready.

The public can contact AUM at 012-3970431.

Mobilising, collecting and distributing food on an almost daily basis is hectic enough, but Krsna and Deviy still have the energy and passion to continue serving the needy on weekends.

On Saturdays, they and volunteers cook at their home in Seri Kembangan, stirring big pots of curry in their front porch while others chop vegetables. The food is distributed to needy families as well.

Once a month, they also put together a package of daily essential items and vegetables and distribute to some families in the Klang Valley. – December 22, 2019.