This Hong Kong charity has served 78,000 meals to the needy since 2022

More Good has fed senior citizens, asylum seekers, migrant women and the homeless – and even hosts events at its 8,000 sq ft space

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Volunteers bring their kids to the kitchen at More Good in Hong Kong. Photo: Alexander Mak

Published: 12:45pm, 14 Nov 2024

“OK guys,” says chef Jeff Poon, circling the large island of an industrial-sized kitchen in Chai Wan. “Today we’re going to be making Japanese chicken curry with rice and salad.” For a Monday away from the office, chopping ingredients for those in need, it’s debatable whether one could be doing more good.

And that’s why we’re here, at More Good, a social enterprise and charity serving the underserved in one of the most unequal places on Earth. Just shy of three years old, the organisation is run by those who make food, and do so for those who can’t always afford to eat well.

Chef Jeff Poon at More Good in Hong Kong. Photo: Alexander Mak

In 2020, back when so many professional kitchens were empty thanks to Covid-19, co-founders Brian Fung, Tim King, Kiyoshi Hoshimi-Caines, Kenneth Chan and Matt Abergel began what was known as the Family Meal Collective.

“Everything was so uncertain, how long it would last, how serious it was going to be,” says chef Abergel, one of the names behind Sheung Wan’s favourite yakitori spot, Yardbird, where the collective began cooking for those in need that August. “Instead of just sitting around, we decided it was a chance for us to do something with the extra time and resources we had.”

In December 2021 they rebranded to More Good and through their network of volunteers and sponsors, things have continued to grow from the Chai Wan location.

“We needed to find a space that could handle a large kitchen so we knew we needed to look at areas with more industrial buildings,” says King. “We wanted a space large enough to grow into.”