Kraft Heinz & Rice Against Hunger join hands at RAI to make meal packages.

Amsterdam Oct. 26, 2023 - RAI Amsterdam facilitated a major "meal packing event" at the RAI last Tuesday, Oct. 24, 2023. This initiative was led by Kraft Heinz in cooperation with Rise Against Hunger. Once a year, meal packs are made for people in famine. 

Kraft Heinz Packathon event is the world's largest volunteer effort. Since 2013, Rise Against Hunger and Kraft Heinz have partnered to address the global problem of hunger. This year, the event took place at our RAI venue.

Volunteers were given 2.5 hours to pack as many meal packages as possible. These packets contained bags of rice, soy, lentils and vitamin tablets. While enjoying music, the volunteers worked together and eventually managed to pack 120,744 packages. This number of packets provided 559 children with meals for an entire school year. 

More than a quarter of a billion people experience acute hunger, including 35 million children under the age of 5. 5.7 million children under 5 years old are so severely malnourished that they could die at any time. For the first time in 5 years, famine has increased worldwide. And that is why the dedication of volunteers and organizations, such as Rise Against Hunger and Kraft Heinz, is hugely important.