We have a very unlikely story to share about how it came about. Unlike many products which got involved in humanitarian effort as part of the company CSR, Santapan is actually born out of a product that was meant entirely to help people.
Hero Meals were initially created to provide food aid to those in need, particularly in disaster zones. During the pandemic, it came in particularly handy serving frontliners ranging from medical personnel working around the clock in hospitals, policemen at roadblocks, firemen conducting sanitisation effort to personnel from various government agencies involved in lockdowns.
But the greatest relief it provided, were to families that were suddenly confronted with tremendous hardship out of the blue. Many families had caregivers who had to be admitted leaving children and elderly without support and care. There were families who had young children but no one to care for them. Old folks being taken care of by their children but suddenly left to fend for themselves. Many were not mobile, much less able to cook.
The needs were immediate and urgent. Often without warning and time to prepare. And that was how Hero Meals came in and why it is given freely.
We saw how fast these meals could be deployed and provided near immediate aid. To buy time. To bring relief. To provide a modicum of comfort amidst all the hardship.
From June till November 2021, a total of 27,000 Hero Meals were distributed. Most were given out in Klang Valley, but some went all the way to Kelantan, Kedah, Terengganu and even Sabah. We continue providing aid now during the monsoon season.
Along the way, many people who had tasted Hero meals wanted to know where they could purchase it. Many felt it was premium food and not only convenient, but it was also tasty. We were hesitant to sell this as it was and is still meant to be aid provided freely.
However, we soon realised that with the amount of Hero Meals we've been giving out, we needed a source of income to make it sustainable in the long run. For us to continue giving Hero Meals freely meant we needed to have something to bring in income to cover the production of it.
And this is our story. How the idea of Santapan was conceived and now, about to be offered commercially for the first time. We hope you will enjoy the flavours, and more importantly, play an active part of our story in the days to come.
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Pre-Orders for the launch of our starter Santapan products will be opened on 13th December 2021. Follow this page to keep updated as we add on more selections over the months.
*Every Santapan Meal purchased provides us the opportunity to produce a Hero Meal to be given out freely.