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Before russia launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine, Oleksii, known by his military nickname “Yogurt,” was a familiar face at festivals, culinary tours, and even a popular Ukrainian cooking show. But when war came, the former event organizer mobilized, bringing his skills to the battlefield in a unique way: revolutionizing how soldiers are fed.

Now serving with the 47th Magura Brigade’s anti-aircraft missile artillery division, Oleksii took it upon himself to elevate military dining. With community support, he raised funds and outfitted a mobile kitchen—a fully functional food truck capable of moving with the troops. This innovation has already made a tangible impact at the front, delivering meals to Ukrainian soldiers under challenging conditions.

The success of the first food truck has inspired Oleksii to expand. A second vehicle is en route to Kyiv, where it will be equipped with the necessary tools and supplies before heading to the front lines. His vision goes beyond the current conflict: Oleksii hopes these mobile kitchens will eventually replace traditional field kitchens and even dreams of showcasing one at a Victory Day parade in the future.

Currently stationed on the front lines, Oleksii is open to speaking with journalists remotely or, when feasible, in person.

• food
• military

World Central Kitchen (WCK) has opened its first community kitchen in Lviv, providing vital cooking facilities for a shelter housing families of internally displaced persons (IDPs). The kitchen was established in a dormitory that previously lacked any cooking infrastructure. To create the space, WCK renovated a former assembly hall, constructing an additional wall to accommodate a fully modern kitchen.  

The facility is equipped with electric stoves, ovens, refrigerators, exhaust hoods, workstations, a dishwashing area, and a generator to ensure uninterrupted operation. The shelter can host up to 300 residents, including 100 children, 100 adults, and 100 elderly individuals. Thanks to the new kitchen, residents can now prepare nutritious meals in a safe and comfortable environment.  

Before the kitchen’s opening, WCK had provided over 157,000 meals to IDPs at the shelter from June 1, 2022.  

For reference: Since the onset of russia’s all-out invasion, WCK has prepared more than 274 million meals, including 68 million hot meals. The organization has also distributed over 10.1 million food parcels, totaling 109,037 tons of aid. 

Founded by acclaimed chef José Andrés, WCK has a long history of responding to crises worldwide, from natural disasters to wars, delivering meals and hope to those in need.  

• casualties
• food
• Lviv

World Central Kitchen (WCK) has launched a new winter initiative to aid Ukrainian communities impacted by the ongoing war. The organization is distributing vegetable parcels to frontline areas, helping families navigate the challenges of the colder months.  

Every week, 8,550 vegetable packages are delivered to regions including Kherson, Mykolaiv, Donetsk, Kharkiv, Chernihiv, and Zaporizhia. Each parcel weighs 9 kilograms and includes staples essential for preparing traditional Ukrainian dishes—beets, cabbage, carrots, onions, potatoes, and garlic.  

WCK emphasized that winter presents significant hardships for many Ukrainians, particularly those in areas where food supplies have been disrupted or where access to essential goods is severely restricted.  

For reference: World Central Kitchen is a non-profit organization dedicated to providing meals to people affected by disasters and crises. Founded in 2010 by renowned chef José Andrés, WCK gained global recognition for its work in Haiti following the catastrophic earthquake that year. The group continues to support communities in need with on-the-ground food relief efforts.

• casualties
• food
• volunteers

The NGO Every Animal has teamed up with nutritionist Mark Shpara, Macro-2019 and Eat Me At to develop seven daily plant-based meal plans for military personnel. The aim is to provide a plant-based diet for vegan and vegetarian service members, as well as those who are fasting or avoiding animal products for health reasons.

Ukrainian defenders can order a free ‘Vegan Ration’, which includes 18 plant-based meals (8 starters and 10 main dishes, ready to eat).

The rations are sent by post.

Journalists can learn more about the vegan rations for the military in Kyiv.

For reference: “Every Animal” is an NGO founded in 2019 to promote veganism and advocate for animal rights. Since the start of the full-scale invasion, the organization has sent more than 2,000 free weekly vegan rations to military personnel. They also held nine charity festivals called Vegan Weekend, where they raised and donated 3.5 million UAH for the needs of the defense forces.

• food
• military
• Kyiv

The Murashky charity organization officially launched in Kyiv in September 2022, but its story began much earlier. A group of dedicated volunteers came together to support the Armed Forces immediately after russia’s full-scale invasion. Just two weeks later, the newly formed team, dubbed “Murashky” (Little Ants), delivered its first batch of biscuits and dried meat to the front lines. By spring, they had acquired the necessary equipment and established their first production facility.

Today, the team produces and delivers over 30,000 servings of food each month to Ukrainian soldiers. Since its inception, Murashky has produced over 4,000 liters of anti-cold mixtures, more than 230,000 servings of biscuits, and over 360,000 servings of dry meals.

The organization’s workforce consists of 15 to 25 volunteers who dedicate their time daily, often joined by international supporters who pitch in to help the cause.

• food
• volunteers
• Kyiv

The emergency response team from the international non-profit organization World Central Kitchen (WCK) is actively aiding large-scale evacuations in the Vovchansk and Lipetsk communities of Kharkiv Oblast. From the outset, WCK has been on the ground providing hot meals, beverages, and emotional support to those impacted by the war.

Since May 10, WCK has distributed thousands of hot meals and sandwiches to approximately 10,000 evacuees. The team has also recently extended their assistance to evacuees from the Sumy region, aiding their relocation to the city of Sumy.

WCK welcomes all media inquiries and encourages coverage of their ongoing efforts.

For context, in Ukraine, WCK delivers hot meals, vegetable kits, grocery kits, and seeds to frontline areas. They also provide hot drinks and food in large cities affected by missile strikes, supporting both victims and rescue workers. Since initiating operations in February 2022, WCK has prepared more than 260 million meals for Ukrainians.

• casualties
• food
• Kharkiv
• Sumy

From now on, employees of the kitchen train are making food for the Kharkiv Psychiatric Hospital. The facility was damaged by russian missiles on the night of April 27 this year. At the time of the attack, there were 60 patients and 5 doctors in it. While the hospital’s canteen and other utility premises are under restoration, the kitchen train of Ukrzaliznytsia will take care of food for the patients.

For reference: In September 2023, Ukrzaliznytsia created the world’s first autonomous kitchen train called Food Train. Such a train is capable of providing more than 10,000 meals per day anywhere and anytime. Food Train can work autonomously for 5-7 days, and the equipment allows cooking such meals as soups, porridges, salads and meat.

Since its launch, the kitchen train team has already made 350,000 meals, of which 265,000 were made for the residents of Kharkiv oblast affected over the past month. Food purchases and the operation of the train are funded by the Howard G. Buffett Foundation.

• casualties
• food
• russian crimes
• Kharkiv

The history of a front-line canteen near Pavlohrad, Dnipropetrovsk region, began with one pot of borscht. Before the full-scale invasion, entrepreneur couple Nataliia and Anatolii Bilovol had a restaurant. On February 24, 2022, they closed their establishment, and two days later reopened it as a free canteen for military personnel. The first dish served for the Ukrainian defenders on their way to the front line was borscht. Nataliia says: there was not much borscht, only one pan, but it was enough to feed several soldiers. Later, fellow villagers of Nataliia and Anatolii started to help them cook for the military, and volunteers began delivering the necessary food. In addition to borscht, potatoes, salads and compote appeared on the menu. Volunteers gave meals-to-go to those who did not have time to stop and eat.

The canteen can serve up to two thousand soldiers per day. Volunteers work in shifts, some of the locals are on duty even at night. People from different parts of Ukraine come to cook for the military, bringing food and homemade goodies. Over the two years of operation of the canteen, Nataliia and Anatolii made so many liters of borscht and kilograms of food for the Ukrainian defenders that the exact amount is impossible to count.

• food
• volunteers

Yevhen Kompanets ended up in a wheelchair as a result of an industrial injury in 2011. At that time, in the hospital, he met his future wife, who worked as a nurse. And now, together with their daughter, they cook goodies in their kitchen for Ukraine’s defenders. 

The family started volunteering in April 2022. They work every day and have already prepared 150 thousand dishes for the defenders. These include dumplings, pancakes, donuts, pies, and chebureks. (The dumplings are oven-ready meals, so service members only need to defrost them). In addition, the family prepares borscht dressings and cutlets and even manages to send more than 7 tons of pork fat to the defenders. The family invests their own money in the work, and caring people also help with donations.

Journalists can talk to Yevhen by phone, online, or site visit after February 15.

For reference: February 24, 2024, Ukraine marks 2 years since Russia commenced its unprovoked criminal full-scale invasion. This attack was the culmination of the initial war of aggression that Russia has been waging against Ukraine for 10 years. This armed conflict was ignited on February 20, 2014. Back then, Russians invaded the territory of Ukrainian Crimea giving no obvious sign of its covert military operation in the now-occupied peninsula. After that, Russia started a war in Ukraine’s east. 

• food
• volunteers
• Cherkasy

Oksana Vinnik, 56, an agronomist by profession, was born in the Lviv region but moved to Volyn almost 40 years ago. She has 4 adult children and 8 grandchildren. With the full-blown war outbreak, Oksana turned to volunteering: cooking borscht and dumplings for the military in her kitchen and sending the food to the front line.

Later, she saw an advertisement by Volyn Territorial Defense Brigade looking for people to fill various positions, including a cook. It hit Oksana that this offer was right for her. Nobody but Oksana’s husband knew about her decision to mobilize, but she told her children and grandchildren after she received her military ID.

Oksana is currently stationed in the Lyman area, where she and a team of cooks prepare home-cooked meals for soldiers, including those who have been wounded at the front.

• food
• military
• women