Consider This from NPR - A 'bittersweet' milestone: a million meals per day in Gaza

Episode Date: February 11, 2026

The people of Gaza have faced the threat of hunger since the start of the war between Israel and Hamas. But after a ceasefire agreement finally came in October last year, aid organizations were able to scale up their deliveries of desperately needed food aid.World Central Kitchen is one of the major organizations fighting hunger in Gaza. This week, it announced a milestone: It is now serving one million meals in Gaza every day.NPR’s Ailsa Chang speaks with the organization’s founder, celebrity chef José Andrés, about what that milestone means and what still needs to be done.For sponsor-free episodes of Consider This, sign up for Consider This+ via Apple Podcasts or at plus.npr.org. Email us at [e-mail] episode was produced by Jordan-Marie Smith and Elena Burnett. It was edited by Michael Levitt, Patrick Jarenwattananon and Nadia Lancy. Our executive producer is Sami Yenigun.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

All right, we're going to get to some good news now, or at least some less bad news, about the hunger crisis in Gaza, which comes to us from the aid group called World Central Kitchen. In the worst moments of humanity, the best of humanity shows up. Myself, I've been in many. I've been in Gaza. I've been in North Carolina in Asheville. The celebrity chef and restaurant owner, Jose Andres, started World Central Kitchen to deliver emergency food aid to Haiti after the 2010 earthquake. It is now one of the biggest and earliest groups to arrive in places affected by disaster and war. But in Gaza, the organization faced some of its greatest challenges. World Central Kitchen says it's suspending aid operations in Gaza after an Israeli airstrike killed seven of its workers. On April 1st, 2024, a World Central Kitchen convoy, which included armored vehicles and was clearly marked with the aid group's logo, was hit by an Israeli strike while leaving a war.

warehouse in Gaza on a route coordinated with Israeli forces. Israel apologized for the attack that killed the workers, and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said his country, quote, deeply regrets the tragic incident. World Central Kitchen paused operations, but eventually resumed them. Here's more of what Jose Andres told NPR's Morning Edition in 2024. There is the very big moral question. Do we go or we don't go? Do we watch from outside? or we go and we try to help next to the people that are suffering. Last year, World Central Kitchen had to temporarily pause some operations, again, this time due to supply shortages. The widespread hunger crisis had brought about an official declaration of famine in parts of northern Gaza.

That's according to the world's leading authority on food insecurity. And now, yes, we promise good news, and here it is. In recent months after a ceasefire agreement allowed more goods to... to enter Gaza, World Central Kitchen has rapidly increased its activity. And on Wednesday, the organization announced a new daily milestone. It is now serving one million meals in Gaza every single day. Consider this. Those one million daily meals are substantial progress, but they are going to a region

with a pre-war population of more than two million people. The demand remains. So after the break, I speak with Jose Andres on the path ahead. From NPR, I'm Elsa Chang. It's Consider This from NPR. World Central Kitchen is now serving one million hot meals every single day in Gaza. But in a press release, it writes, quote, progress does not mean the crisis is over.

This week I spoke with chef Jose Andres about the announcement and what could actually end this crisis? We always believe at World Central Kitchen that locals know best. So obviously, very proud of the World Central Kitchen, but I'm even prouder that the people of Gaza are feeding Gaza. We have mobile bakeries. We have three. They are some of the best bakeries you can find anywhere in the world.

The government of Jordan helped us build them and ship them there. But also we partner with local bakeries. because we need to be supporting the locals. We have also six kitchens of Wall Central Kitchen that we do over 100,000 meals in each one of them. But then we have more than 60 kitchen partners that help us reach every single part of Gaza. Also, we have private restaurants that we support

because it's very important that we start supporting local restaurants because we need to keep rebuilding the local infrastructure. So that's how Wall Central Kitchen has arrived to one million meals. Obviously, it's a bittersweet celebration. It's a bittersweet because, yes, Walsandaua Kitchen is doing this, other NGOs, but more aid needs to arrive every single day, starting yesterday today. And as you're working to intensify this effort, I know that personal safety for your workers is still an issue

as the Israeli military continues airstrikes in Gaza, which it says are for targeting militants or response. to Hamas attacks, how worried are you about the safety of your workers still, even as the ceasefire has come down for a few months? We are very worried every day when you are in a conflict zone of everyone, not only of everyone of the World Central Kitchen members, but for everyone, every civilian, every children, every humanitarian. Gaza has been a hard place over the last two years, and we must be bringing these very simple

ask as President Trump is trying to move the peace plan forward. It's something we all should celebrate, but we need to be asking that no more civilians must be dying. The holy month of Ramadan is approaching in about a week. How is your organization preparing for that to try to help people observe during that month? Well, the kitchens are going to be obviously fully functional. We do hot meals. We are planning to deliver 100,000 Ramadan food kits.

Every food kit produces around 70 family meals. So we're going to be delivering to 100,000 families, 100,000 Ramadan food kits. So when they gather with dignity at Iftar, they know that they will be able to do that. But the Wals and Drug Kitchen, for many reasons this year, we're going to go with these Ramadan food kits even stronger. It is breathtaking to hear you describe the scale, the level of the level of the effort that's underway right now. I mean, serving just one million meals per day is remarkable. But yes, this is a territory with what, a pre-war population of a little over two million. So as much as you are doing now, let me ask you this, Jose, what will it take in your mind?

What conditions would need to be in place for your operation to be able to finally start scaling down its presence there? Yeah, Walsandau Kitchen is precisely an emergency situation. We go to places that we believe everything is being destroyed in such a way that they need the help that Wals and Drug Kitchen provides and cover the short-term needs of the hungry population. Obviously, already we began doing this. By having more than 60 partner kitchens, we are already believing that the future of the people of Gaza is one moment where they can.

can fit themselves. But we need more than 60. We need many more. We need probably two, three, four hundred. We need more restaurants to reopen again. We need to understand that big part of Gaza is rubble. Everything has been destroyed. But obviously, now that President Trump is about to have a peace conference and where the main

theme is going to be Gaza, the bombing needs to stop. The civilian casualties need to stop targeting reporters and doctors and human Obviously, this cannot be allowed. It's never supposed to happen, but has to stop. Today, we are not doing enough. We must do more on behalf of all the people of Gaza. Jose Andres, chef, restaurateur, and founder of the humanitarian group World Central Kitchen.

Thank you so much, Jose, for everything that you're doing. Thank you for having me. This episode was produced by Jordan Marie Smith and Elena Burnett. It was edited by Michael Levitt, Patrick Jaron Watanananan, and Nadia Lansy. Our executive producer is Sammy Yenigan. It's Consider This from NPR. I'm Elsa Chang.