BACOLOD CITY, Jan. 26 (PIA6) -- At least 2,000 McDonald's Kindness Kitchen meals from Ronald McDonald House Charities were distributed to 15 barangays and three organizations in Bacolod City, in a turnover ceremony as part of the Pilipinas Kontra Gutom (PKG) movement, where Cabinet Secretary Karlo Alexei Nograles is one of the proponents.

Nograles, who heads the country's Task Force Zero Hunger, was in Bacolod City to grace the Kindness Kitchen turnover of meals. He also visited the NVC Production Plant in Barangay Tangub, a Department of Science and Technology Assisted Facility manufacturing Mingo complementary food and dehydrated fruits and vegetables.

After the plant visit, he also observed the NVC's mobile food banking facility during the distribution of vegetable packs to 140 beneficiaries in Barangay Pta. Taytay, also in Bacolod City.

PKG, as a movement, worked with private organizations like the Ronald McDonald House Charities, Coca-Cola, Metrobank, DOLE Philippines, San Miguel Corporation, among others, with the aim to eliminate hunger by 2030.

Bacolod City, according to Ronald McDonald House Charities Executive Director Marie Angeles, is the first city outside of Metro Manila to receive the Kindness Kitchen meals and the 25th city to receive such.

The beneficiaries were selected families of Barangays 1, 2, 3, 4, 6, 8, 10, 12, 13, 14, 16, 35, Banago, Singcang-Airport, and Pahanoccoy, St. Mary's Home for the Aged, Holy Infant Nursery Foundation, and a quarantine center of Bacolod.

Nograles said that the fight against hunger should be the same as the fight against COVID-19 as he cited Bacolod City for leading the fight against COVID-19 in Western Visayas and passing it with flying colors.

To date, McDonald's Kindness Kitchen was able to serve about 400,000 meals nationwide and targets to serve 100,000 more by February 2021.*(LTP/EAD-PIA6 Negros Occidental)