WELFARE CATERING

In one of my travels to the developed world, I found out something striking in an hotel I stayed. United Kingdom is known worldwide for her traditions, dry humour and seemingly arrogance of belief and expression. But, what I saw confounded me till today. It is called welfare catering. By definition, the concept is self explanatory to the simple. For the complex however, welfare catering is the provision of food and drinks for those who obviously could not afford it nor pay for it. The hotel workers on enquiry, told me it is a company policy to periodically provide for the less privileged in the society and that the commonest way of doing that is by getting food and drink across to those in the welfare category. The welfare category however is not limited to displaced folks under the bridges but also contains those who are unable to meet this basic human provision because of ‘inability’.

This category includes schools, healthcare both public and private, prisons and day cares. This charity works is further enhanced by government backing through relevant legislation. A certain percentage of profit is always set aside for this noble idea.  Though, you may rightly posit that the hotels are not charity organizations but the truth of the matter is that any viable organization is capable of doing charitable deeds. Giving back to the society from where you operate from has been in practice since the evolvement of hotels in early ages and its popularity these days is made possible by government participation, peoples’ opinion and deliberate hotel policies.

Sadly, an  average British is not a religious person. They rarely go to church or read the Bible. So, the safe assumption is that they perform their good deeds more out of personal convictions than from any religious compulsion. In contrast, we are probably the most religious nation on planet earth with Israel closely following us. Yet, it’s hardly seen in our deeds that we care that much for the needy amongst us. We rarely give and when we do, we give in anticipation of receiving and with so much fanfare that the receiver is often embarrassed.

Having made a case for the reasons to give, hotels should make it a policy to get involve in welfare catering in their different localities. While it is impossible to care for all, conscious efforts should be made towards spot welfare catering. In average hotels, this responsibility should be under the purview of the food and beverage director. The general manager in smaller hotels should ensure provision of welfare catering. The frequency of this programme would largely depend on hotels’ budget and affordability in terms of time and space. Hotels should also note that serving leftovers is against the gracious tenets of welfare catering.

Remember that when you give it will come back to you, whatever is it that you give!