When did WCK begin working in Ukraine and how many meals has WCK served overall?

World Central Kitchen began working in Ukraine in late February 2022, immediately following the start of the full-scale invasion.

WCK’s operations initially focused on border areas, where there was an urgent need to support Ukrainian refugees already in Poland, Slovakia, and Hungary. However, assistance quickly expanded inside the country, with the mission scaling up in Lviv, Odesa, and Kyiv, and later in frontline cities such as Kharkiv, Kramatorsk, Zaporizhzhia, Mykolaiv, and Dnipro.

WCK began by providing hot meals in partnership with local restaurant partners, thereby also supporting local businesses during the crisis. Within days of activation, dozens of trucks carrying food supplies from Poland began arriving in Lviv. With the support of Ukrzaliznytsia Railways, we then expanded food deliveries to frontline territories.

Since then, WCK has served more than 295 million meals across Ukraine, supporting frontline communities, evacuation hubs, shelters, and areas affected by repeated strikes and infrastructure damage.

How is WCK adapting to change in Ukraine?

2025 was probably one of the most productive, challenging, and, I would also say, adaptive years of our response.

We successfully combined several assistance models: emergency response, regular support, and programs designed to strengthen Ukrainian self-reliance. Due to the increased attacks on civilian infrastructure, we had to reinforce our Emergency teams, provide additional training, and equip them with the necessary technical resources.

When Ukrainian Railways began facing sustained shelling, we developed clear response algorithms to support passengers whose trains were delayed. Within this framework, we aim to provide hot meals whenever possible, and use UZ Meal Kits as an urgent alternative when conditions do not allow.

Our next major challenge came with attacks on Ukraine’s energy system, particularly ahead of what was expected to be an extremely cold winter. Together with our partners at the State Emergency Service (SESU) and Ukrainian Railways, we prepared to support Ukrainians at “Points of Invincibility.” This strategy proved fully effective, as it enabled us to provide meals wherever blackouts occurred.

What are the WCK Ukraine meal kits?

In 2025, WCK Ukraine introduced our Fruit Kit, Children’s Kit, Baby Kit, and the critically important Survival Kit with ready-to-eat food for people living under constant shelling who are unable to cook independently.

These initiatives aim to provide families with tools to improve their living conditions, including:

• Seed Kit (vegetable seeds for home gardening)
  
• Community Kitchens (kitchen equipment for shelters and modular housing sites for displaced persons)
  
• Chicken Kit (10 laying hens plus feed)
  
• Cooking Kit (portable gas stove, 20 gas canisters, and a fire extinguisher) for families without gas supply or facing frequent electricity outages.

Does WCK serve meals to families living on the frontlines? 

Yes, we absolutely support families living close to the frontlines — but the way we do it has to reflect the reality on the ground.

In active frontline areas, we do not deploy large field kitchens. Instead, we focus on solutions that are safer and more practical for those conditions.

That means prioritizing food kits, vegetable kits, survival kits, and cooking kits — often combining these approaches so families receive support that truly matches the situation they’re living in.

Where security allows consistent daily access, we partner with trusted local restaurants to prepare and deliver nourishing meals safely.

Our goal is not to apply one model everywhere. It’s to provide the most appropriate support for each community — balancing safety, dignity, and practicality — so that families living in extremely difficult conditions can still rely on consistent access to food.

What meals are served in Ukraine, and who does the cooking?

From the very beginning of our response and continuing to this day, we have worked closely with local restaurants and catering companies that prepare and deliver meals to our beneficiaries. We ensure fair compensation for our partners while maintaining strict quality and safety standards, including clear requirements for portion size and caloric value, as well as food safety during transport and delivery to recipients.

Together with our partners, we carefully select meals that meet age-specific and dietary requirements whenever possible. At the same time, we prioritize food that is culturally familiar and comforting.

Among the most popular dishes loved by our beneficiaries are buckwheat porridge, chicken cutlets, vinaigrette salad, and, of course, borsch and bohrach.

Where does each meal come from?

Since September 2022, all food, groceries, vegetables, and fruits have been procured within Ukraine. This represents another positive impact of WCK’s assistance — supporting the Ukrainian economy.

We are highly attentive to product quality when selecting suppliers for our food kits, carefully balancing cost considerations while never compromising on quality. We select products to ensure they are both nutritious and enjoyable to eat.

Support our work in Ukraine