World Porridge Day is back with Mary’s Meals

10th October World Porridge Day is back with Mary’s Meals

Every year, the global school feeding charity that began in a shed in the Scottish Highlands commemorates the traditional breakfast of Scotland and its fascinating potential to end child hunger and promote education in some of the world’s poorest communities

10 October 2026. Porridge: while we may think of oats and milk, in Malawi it’s called likuni phala – a corn-soya blend enriched with vitamins and minerals – and in Ethiopia there’s a version called kinche. In some countries, it’s even called Super Cereal. No matter the name, it’s a nourishing and comforting breakfast staple helping millions of children to thrive and learn.

Mary’s Meals reaches more than 3 million children with daily school meals in 16 countries and, wherever possible, the meals are made with locally-procured food, thereby supporting the local economy. In Malawi, Zambia, Kenya, Ethiopia and Zimbabwe, the menu is as simple as a warm mug of CSB+, a corn-soya blend porridge fortified with essential nutrients.

Porridge was being made 32,000 years ago in the Stone Age, but the first World Porridge Day was held on 10 October, 2009. The day was created as a way to raise funds for Mary’s Meals in Dalmally, Scotland, where the global charity was born and still keeps its headquarters.

With Mary´s Meals low-cost model, one school meal costs 0.11 EUR / 0.13 USD / 0.10 GBP. There are currently around 78 million children of primary school age (about 6 to 11 years) who are out of school and 333 million children worldwide are living in extreme poverty.

So, for millions of children, families and communities, a mug of porridge is much more than a traditional or fancy breakfast: it’s a vital safety net. The promise of these meals brings children to the classroom, where they can gain an education and grow up – well-nourished and well-educated – to become the men and women who will lift their communities out of poverty.

Just one example: Zambia

“I bring my children to school because there is food here. I am assured of my children having a meal because at home there is no guarantee that they will have food. The porridge helps to keep our children in school. They learn in class with a full stomach, and this helps them to concentrate.” (Caregiver, Zambia)

“The programme is good, and if you look at our past Grade 7 and Grade 9 performance, you will see improvement. Out of 52 centres, we were ranked number 6, and I attribute that to the porridge, because absenteeism reduced and most learners attended daily.” (Amon Sakala, Head teacher, Katemo Primary School, Zambia)

In the 10 years since the launch of Mary’s Meals’ school feeding programme in Zambia´s Eastern Province, there has been a 22% increase in the percentage of children progressing from primary to secondary school across the region.

The charity’s low-cost approach means that it costs just €22 / $25.20 / £19.15 to provide a child with Mary’s Meals for a school year. This is only possible because of many passionate volunteers in more than 40 countries across the globe – from those who dedicate themselves to fundraising and awareness raising to the many thousands of volunteers who rise at dawn to prepare nutritious meals for the children in their own communities. 

Photos – Copyright: Mary’s Meals 

https://contentlibrary.marysmeals.org?r=24832&k=f0ca98ee2e 

https://contentlibrary.marysmeals.org?r=27175&k=aa62be9bd1 

https://contentlibrary.marysmeals.org?r=19562&k=33ca4ed3ea

Mary\u0027s Meals Zambia Corn-Soya-Blend enriched Porridge ©Mary\u0027s Meals.jpeg

Video – Copyright: Mary’s Meals 

https://contentlibrary.marysmeals.org?r=22610&k=5b527ba838

For Media Inquiries 

Please contact Silvia Tolve at media@marysmeals.org or +44 161 648 7791

Notes to Editors

• Mary’s Meals is a simple idea that works. The charity provides hungry children with one daily meal in a place of education in areas where hunger and poverty often stand in the way of education. 
• Mary’s Meals works with communities to serve vital school meals to more than 3 million children in 16 countries, including Malawi, Liberia, Zambia, Zimbabwe, Madagascar, Kenya, Haiti, Mozambique, Ethiopia, India, South Sudan, Yemen, Lebanon, Benin, Ecuador, and Syria.
• Our mission is to enable people to offer their money, goods, skills or time, and through this involvement, provide the most effective help in the world’s poorest communities.
• Mary’s Meals increases school enrolment and improves school attendance.
• Local communities own and run Mary’s Meals in the countries where the programmes operate and, wherever possible, our meals are made with locally procured food, thereby supporting the local economy.

Please visit marysmeals.org to find out more.