This NGO ensures food at Chepauk stadium never goes to waste after IPL matches

The Chennai Super Kings’ six-wicket loss to Kolkata Knight Riders at MA Chidambaram Stadium, popularly known as the Chepauk Stadium, sure may have disappointed the ‘Yellove’ fandom on May 14. But ask the fans, and at least some would tell you there is much more to the matches at CSK’s home turf than a win or a loss. These few hours at the stadium embody a spirit of joy, perseverance, and pure love for the sport of cricket, they would say, and thanks to the non-profit organisation No Food Waste Chennai, it is also a reason for hundreds in the city to go to sleep with one good meal in their stomach.

After every Indian Premier League (IPL) match here, around 20 volunteers from the No Food Waste Collective wait for the fans to leave the stadium, before collecting unsold food from the 30 to 40 outlets set up on the premises. The process is meticulous. “The food safety officials first check the quality of the food, because a lot of it might have been prepared several hours before the match begins. We need to make sure that the surplus food is consumable, after which we start packing and distributing it among those in need,” says Arun Kumar, regional director of No Food Waste Chennai. 

The team currently has more than 200 volunteers who have zeroed in on nearly 100 spots called “hunger hotspots”, which they have specifically identified to ensure that the free food goes to deserving persons. These are mostly areas where a lot of people gather, such as Koyambedu, the Central railway station, T Nagar, and the Marina Beach stretch among others. “After we pack the food, we load it into two omni vehicles, cars, autos, and two-wheelers. Around five volunteers each will go to these places, identify the people in need, and hand the packets to them.”

Arun says the team makes it happen because of many like-minded people, including officials and management of food outlets, who agreed to come together for this good cause. Domino’s Pizza, Wow Momo, PVR Cafe, Junior Kuppanna, Chai Kings, Burger King, and Hotel Residency are among the food outlets that have extended their support to the initiative.

‘Food safety is primary concern’

P Satheeshkumar, designated officer of Food Safety Department in Chennai, tells TNM that the department has deployed 20 personnel to check the quality of the food. “Food delicacies arrive at the outlets around 5 pm. But the distribution takes place post 11 pm, almost 7-8 hours after food is prepared. We have directed volunteers to only distribute food which is untouched and avoid items kept in open containers. People should not suffer because of the food we gave to them. So our primary concern is food safety,” he says. 

Fans support the No Food Waste Collective's work (Photo: Special Arrangement) 

The department staff also check the temperature of the food and whether the package was opened before clearing it for distribution. “The food should be hygienic and edible. We have also directed the volunteers to separate vegetarian and non-vegetarian food, and to ask people about their preferences before handing them food packets. We should not ignore their wants,” Satheesh says.

Padmanaban Gopalan and Sudhakar founded the No Food Waste collective nearly 10 years ago, with an aim to redistribute superfluous food from weddings, parties, and events. According to their official website, the NGO’s history can be traced back to 2014 in Coimbatore, where they started collecting excess food from events with just two shopper bags and one volunteer, in order to avoid food wastage. They delivered their very first batch using the public transportation system on October 16, 2014, World Food Day. 

The team had also previously collaborated with Swiggy to distribute unsold packed food from outlets that have partnered with the food delivery service. “In 2019, we approached the CSK management to get permission to collect the surplus food. From then on, we have collected food from the Chidambaram stadium for this purpose,” recalls 35-year-old Arun.

Besides the IPL, the No Food Waste Chennai team had also collected the excess food from the stadium after India played the first One Day International (ODI) with West Indies in 2019, while the latter was visiting the country for a tournament. Arun says the collective is also planning to ask the Tamil Nadu Cricket Association (TNCA) to get permission to collect excess food after the upcoming 13th edition of the International Cricket Council (ICC)’s Men's Cricket World Cup tournament. The ICC World Cup 2023 is scheduled to take place in India between October 5 and November 19.

Volunteers dispatch food (Photo: Special Arrangement) 

“On one side, every day, a lot of people waste food without knowing its importance. On the other side, there are hundreds of thousands of people who go to sleep without having one complete meal in a day. We launched this initiative to reduce that gap,” Arun says. The NGO is currently working towards fulfilling two of the 17 Sustainable Development Goals — a hunger-free world and zero food waste — put forth by the United Nations, the NGO’s website proudly notes.

Meanwhile, all eyes are now on CSK’s upcoming match against the Delhi Capitals on Saturday, May 20, which if won, could bring the team right back to its home turf for the Qualifiers — once again filling hearts, minds, and stomachs.