The University of Kelaniya demonstrates its commitment to Sustainable Development Goal 2: Zero Hunger by providing affordable, hygienic, and nutritious meals through its network of university canteens. These dining facilities, managed under the supervision of the Welfare Division, offer a range of meal options at subsidized prices to ensure that no student is left behind due to financial constraints.

All canteen operators are selected through a transparent and competitive process, and the services are regularly monitored for food quality, cleanliness, and price compliance. The university canteens accommodate diverse dietary preferences and maintain food safety standards, promoting health, well-being, and food security within the campus community.

By ensuring accessible and budget-friendly meals for students and staff alike, the University of Kelaniya plays a crucial role in fighting hunger, enhancing student nutrition, and creating a more equitable and inclusive academic environment.

BACKGROUND

Faculty of Medicine, University of Kelaniya, Ragama, offers two undergraduate degree programme; MBBS and BSc Speech and Hearing Sciences. Nearly 1000 students have been studying in these programmes at a given time. The majority of the student population have been given hotel facilities, as they are from various districts, and they are expected to attend clinical and practical training over extended hours. There are two canteens, which provide meals for students, who stay in hotels, and students, who come from home. With rising expenses and low economic background, many students expect meals for a reasonable price without compromising the quality and hygienic conditions. Fulfilling the basic physical and physiological needs is an essential requirement of creating a conducive environment for learning. Although the two canteens have been tendered out it has been proven to be futile in achieving these goals. We have received repeated complaints from students that the quality of food and the hygienic condition is abysmal. People, who win tenders appears to be incompetent in providing quality food for a large crowd and they tend to leave without completing their contacts periods.

OBJECTIVES OF THE PROJECT

We are in a need to improve the canteen facilities of the faculty with the aim of

• Reducing the price of food by reducing waste and improving the efficiency of food

• preparation

• Improving the quality of food through the mechanization of the kitchen

• Enhancing student satisfaction with meals and dining facilities

Therefore, the expansion project of the hotel canteen has several objectives:

1. To improve the seating capacity and space of the existing canteen

2. To renovate the storage and preparation areas of the existing canteen

3. To mechanize and automate the functions of the kitchen

For more information 👉  Expansion of Student Canteen at Faculty of Medicine

Faculty of Medicine, University of Kelaniya understanding its social responsibility in safeguarding food security and nutritional well-being of its community, Green Practices Committee together with Students Green Society, initiated a vegetable gardening project at the faculty premises with the support from the administration. Through this venture we aimed to bring faculty community together to face economic crisis and hope to inculcate the attitudes of social responsibility, volunteerism. SDGs including SDG 2 (end hunger, provide food security and access to sufficient nutrition), 3 (promote mental health and wellbeing), 4 (access to quality education) and 17 (promote voluntary commitments) are some of the SGD achieved by the project. Under this project, we were able to provide 1954.64 kg of organic fruits and vegetables to the nonprofit welfare canteen managed by the Kelaniya University Faculty of Medicine Teachers Association, for the benefit of the faculty community. 

With the economic downturn in the Sri Lanka, many students at the Faculty of Medicine, University of Kelaniya were found struggling to purchase meals despite the subsidised meal rates offered at the KUFMTA Canteen. Since April 2023 the “Free Food Tag” system provided 20 free lunches worth Rs 250, daily for any needy students. Each weekday at lunch time, 20 tags mentioned ‘Free Food Tag” is displayed adjacent to the cashier. 

Students who feel the need pick up a tag and hand it over to the cashier and their payment will be then waved off. Since April 2023 we have been able to provide 6224 such free food tags for the students. The generous donations of the KUFMTA membership, well-wishers and alumni funded the students to have a healthy nutritious lunch. As training health care professionals, we are sure that the students who benefit would in the future extend the same kindness and generosity when they are able to do so. 

The university offers a variety of food choices in all its canteens, allowing students to select from both vegetarian and non-vegetarian options. Additionally, the Faculty of Medicine has introduced a special intervention tailored to their needs, offering specific curry dishes at a reduced price. These meals are provided at an affordable cost, with the price being half of what students would pay for a similar meal outside the university. This initiative ensures that students not only have access to nutritious meals but also benefit from cost savings.

The University of Kelaniya is dedicated to providing healthy and affordable food choices across all its canteens. These canteens serve as essential hubs for nourishing the university community, ensuring that students and staff have access to nutritious meals at affordable prices.

Objectives:

• Ensure affordable meal options are available across all campus canteens.

• Promote healthy eating habits by offering balanced and nutritious meal options.

• Support food security by keeping meal prices low, making healthy food accessible to everyone.Key Features:

Key Features of the Canteens:

• Affordable Pricing: All canteens offer meals that are budget-friendly, ensuring students and staff can afford nutritious meals daily.

• Healthy Food Options: Meals are prepared using fresh, locally sourced ingredients, promoting a healthy diet. The emphasis is on providing non-toxic, wholesome food.

• Diverse Menus: Each canteen offers a variety of food options to cater to different dietary preferences, including vegetarian and traditional Sri Lankan meals.

Impact on the University Community:

• The availability of affordable and nutritious food helps to combat hunger and food insecurity among students and staff.

• By promoting healthy eating, these canteens contribute to improved physical and mental well-being, which supports better academic performance and overall quality of life on campus

The University of Kelaniya composting project not only contributes to a cleaner and more attractive university environment but also supports sustainable practices by reducing waste, promoting soil health, and making compost accessible to the wider community. It showcases the university's commitment to environmental stewardship and responsible waste management.

The University has launched a composting project with the goal of beautifying the campus environment and making it more environmentally friendly. This initiative includes two compost yards, one located at the Landscape Division on the main campus and the other at the Faculty of Medicine. All the compost produced in faculty of Medicine is directly applied in the vegetable gardedn of the faculty producing organic food.

Composting at the Landscape Division commenced in September 2015. This yard primarily utilizes garden waste generated on a daily basis from the university premises as raw material for compost production.  In April 2016, the Japanese Takakura composting method was introduced here. This method involves the incorporation of biodegradable kitchen waste into the composting process, enhancing its organic content and nutritional value. 

The produced compost is currently being utilized in the Fruit and Vegetable Garden, where it acts as a valuable soil amendment, enriching the soil with nutrients and improving its fertility. The compost is available in 5 kg bags that come with reusable packaging, offering an affordable and environmentally friendly option for customers at Rs. 100.00 per bag. 

Awareness on production process of compost, promoting eco-friendly agricultural practices within the community.

The Landscape Division at the University of Kelaniya recently held an awareness session on composting, focusing on its importance in sustainable agriculture. This session educated participants on how composting organic waste can create nutrient-rich soil amendments that enhance crop growth, improve soil health, and reduce dependency on chemical fertilizers. By highlighting the direct benefits of composting for agricultural productivity, the session demonstrated how composting can lead to more resilient and fertile soils, essential for sustainable farming. Attendees learned techniques for integrating composting into agricultural practices, contributing to healthier crops and more sustainable food production. This initiative is part of the university’s commitment to promoting eco-friendly agricultural practices within the community.