16,000 food packets, 200 volunteers: How a Dubai family plans to distribute half a million iftar meals this Ramadan

16,000 food packets, 200 volunteers: How a Dubai family plans to distribute half a million iftar meals this Ramadan

The initiative was started for those who do not know how to cook or afford quality food

KT photos by SM Ayaz Zakir

Published: Sun 2 Apr 2023, 6:00 AM

A truck packed with hot meals, water, fruits, laban, and dates makes its way to DIP, Sajja, Tecom and Al Quoz to treat residents of these neighbourhoods to iftar. It is part of an initiative led by a Dubai family to feed residents who cannot afford quality meals or don't know how to cook.

Preparing such a humongous quantity of food is no mean feat. From sourcing meat, rice and other raw materials, the preparation for the iftar meal starts early morning. The sourced items are transported to multiple kitchens in Dubai and Ajman where chefs start their preparations at 7 am. They have to cook 7,500 kg of mutton or chicken pulao, which is then packed in over 16,000 aluminium food packets and dispatched to various locations.

Besides the main meal, 16,000 water bottles, laban, 4,000 kg of fruits, and 200 kg of dates are also distributed daily.

This grandeur iftar is courtesy of Happyhappyuae Drive, an initiative led by the Malawian brothers Imaran Karim and Mohammed Karim and their family members. They collaborated on