Project overview

Kitchen in a Box promotes access to safe infrastructure for the preparation and delivery of nutritious school meals, contributing to a better learning environment for children.

The Problem

In El Salvador, 80 percent of schools do not have a canteen or lunch room, and only 14 percent have a temporary space assigned for the preparation of school meals. This accounts for more than 700 schools and 154,000 students nationwide. Furthermore, school meals are often prepared using makeshift wood-burning stoves, which pose a substantial risk of contamination, foodborne diseases and malnutrition to children, adolescents and the cooking staff. Current conditions do not allow schools or the government to optimize their school meal programmes to contribute to the physical well-being and learning capacity of students.

School garden
WFP El Salvador

 

The Solution

Kitchen in a Box builds smart kitchens for schools with a holistic approach. It offers durable and low-cost infrastructure, equips kitchens with context-specific technology and storage, and builds capacity in the community for safe and hygienic food preparation and nutrition.

Additionally, it integrates planet-friendly components such as renewable energy and school gardens. The school garden produces food for school meals, serves as a learning space to promote local food production and uses drip irrigation systems to save water.

Kitchen in a Box aims to promote access to safe infrastructure for the preparation and delivery of nutritious school meals, contributing to a better learning environment for children.

With the technical support of WFP Engineering, Kitchen in a Box transforms recycled containers into kitchens and equips them with all the necessary materials for cooking and storing food to offer school meals. 

 

“Now we have griddles, but electric ones. The food cooking time will be much faster because of the pressure cookers. The cooks have a different way of cooking food that won’t take as long anymore. The school garden will diversify the children's nutrition by providing them with different vegetables.”

Magdalena Lemus, Directora del Centro Escolar Altavista
Impact

WFP, alongside the Ministry of Education, Science and Technology from El Salvador, has strengthened the school feeding programme by improving kitchen infrastructure in three pilot schools, reaching 3,122 students and community members. The implementation ensures food is being prepared in better, safer conditions and trained the school community in how to provide safer, more nutritious school meals.

Two children smiling to camera with their meal provided by Kitchen-In-A-Box.
WFP El Salvador

 

“KIAB allows for school feeding with an environmentally friendly approach and adaptation to climate change in El Salvador’s Dry Corridor, where every drop of water is important.”
Riaz Lodhi, WFP El Salvador Country Director
What's next for Kitchen in a Box?

Kitchen in a Box has started a second sprint to continue the innovation’s development. As part of the scope of the second phase, the team aims to integrate learnings from the first sprint in the three implemented kitchens and implement four new kitchens to test other models of infrastructure and equipment. In addition, the team will strengthen the monitoring and evaluation for evidence generation and create an implementation guide with the objective of scaling the solution to other countries around the globe.

Kitchen in a Box can potentially impact over 700 schools at the national level by providing secure and sustainable infrastructure, enabling schools to deliver nutritious meals and an appropriate learning environment.

Last updated: 09/04/2025