An estimated 820 million people around the world do not have enough to eat, according to the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations. That’s because extreme poverty prevents many families from buying the food they need or obtaining the resources required to farm their own. Climate conditions and violent conflicts also play a role in destroying crops, displacing families and exacerbating global hunger.
Tragically, vulnerable populations — especially children — are the ones who are most devastated by this hunger crisis; in fact, children represent half of the world’s poor. With malnutrition on the rise, the Church is eager to find sustainable solutions that will feed the hungry and share the mercy of Christ with those who are suffering. One way that Cross Catholic Outreach contributes to these relief efforts is by cost-effectively sourcing, packing and shipping Vitafood — a product that is making a profound difference and providing millions of meals each year.
Vitafood is the generic name for all of Cross Catholic Outreach’s specially formulated meal packs, which are designed to meet the needs of the malnourished. Though we receive Vitafood from different sources, each source develops Vitafood with three main components, including:
These meal packs are an extremely flexible resource. They come in several varieties and can be prepared with additional spices or ingredients to suit local tastes, while providing the optimal balance of vitamins, minerals, protein, fiber, fat and carbohydrates that hungry bodies need.
Cross Catholic Outreach receives donations of Vitafood coordinated by well-respected international aid organizations. Sometimes, these donations arrive prepacked in airtight bags, ready to ship. At other times, we receive the components for Vitafood separately — the rice or potato base, the beans or soy powder and the vitamin-rich vegetable mix. In these circumstances, local parishes, schools and other organizations help prepare the Vitafood for shipment at our Food Packing Events. These events provide an incredible opportunity for U.S. Catholics to put their faith into action and engage in the revolution against world hunger. They also make the packing process extremely cost-effective, freeing up more resources for shipping and distribution to hungry families.
Once the Vitafood packets are sealed, they are packed into 40-foot shipping containers, placed on cargo ships, and sent to international ports. Each container holds about 272,160 servings of Vitafood (approximately six meals per packet), which are picked up by our trusted distribution partners and delivered to Catholic parishes, schools, hospitals, orphanages and other programs that directly serve the needy in their communities.
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To get Vitafood meals ready for shipping, Cross Catholic Outreach relies on Food Packing Events hosted and organized by dedicated volunteers.
Larry Perkins, membership director for the Dr. John Henry Griffin Council #2293, has participated in a number of Food Packing Events during his time as a Knight of Columbus. “When the Chapter does a Food Packing Event, if I’m available, I help,” he said simply.
At each event, volunteers of all ages from parishes, schools and other organizations don hairnets and get to work measuring, weighing and packaging the ingredients that make up the meal packs. With detailed guidance from Cross Catholic Outreach, the process is both efficient and fun.
“The first time I did the food packing, I was able to work several stations of the line. It was amazing to know we were helping others by donating a few hours of our time, and it was great to see families show up to help,” Larry explained.
The Knights of Columbus help us coordinate Food Packing Events all across the United States each year, and the impact both at home and abroad is incredible. Because of their efforts, impoverished children and families around the world receive life-changing nutritional support, fighting malnutrition and easing the burden of hunger. Here in the U.S., parishes and communities are able to come together and form tighter bonds in service to Jesus Christ.
“By working together, we can impact more families globally and show the local community that we ‘talk the talk’ and ‘walk the walk,’” Larry said. “Both the Food Packing Events and Box of Joy® are great programs to help those in need and let them know that God loves them.”
During the previous fiscal year, Cross Catholic Outreach shipped material aid to 24 distribution partners in 16 countries, including the Diocese of Suchitepéquez-Retalhuleu in Guatemala. Since 2019, we have worked with that diocese to provide integral support for poor families in rural areas.
Vitafood meals are a life-changing resource for these families, who are often struggling with unsafe housing, scarce employment opportunities and the natural disasters that frequently affect Guatemala. Due to these conditions, nearly half of Guatemalan children under the age of 5 are suffering from malnutrition (World Food Programme). Mothers and fathers striving to keep food on the table are extremely grateful for shelf-stable, protein-packed meals that can stretch their food budget and help them feed their children, even when work is hard to find.
Parents Olivia and Euelio have experienced this blessing firsthand. Euelio is a day laborer who seeks work in neighboring fields that grow cantaloupe, corn, sesame and other local crops. When he is able to find employment, he earns only about $13 per day. Sometimes he can find work for up to six days a week, but often it is fewer.
For the past four years, this family has received Vitafood support from the diocese, enabling them to provide three meals each day for their children—Jadiel, Ariana (pictured above) and Danny.
“Thank God, my children really love this rice meal. Sometimes, it’s all we have,” Olivia said. She noted that her children are healthier now that they are nourished with Vitafood, and that Jadiel and Ariana have the energy and strength they need to succeed in school.
Euelio agreed, adding that they had witnessed the biggest transformation in their oldest child. With Vitafood meals, Jadiel quickly began to gain weight and develop normally. “We could see the change in him,” Euelio said gratefully.
Malnutrition can cause lasting and sometimes irreversible damage in children. Boys and girls who do not receive proper nutrition suffer arrested cognitive, physical and social development, and after the age of 5, the effects of chronic malnutrition cannot be reversed. Adults suffer as well (particularly the elderly and pregnant or nursing mothers), and many struggling people around the world are too hungry and too sick to work a steady job or otherwise improve their situations. Without enough to eat, families’ lives are at risk, and their chances of ever escaping the cycle of poverty are meager at best.
Thankfully, there is a light in the darkness: the global Catholic Church! Last year, the support of our compassionate donors helped ship more than 28 million Vitafood meals to feed the hungry through Catholic ministries around the world — and today, there are plenty more opportunities to make an impact.
Working together as the body of Christ, we can fight hunger and restore hope through devoted Catholic missions in developing nations. Give now to partner with us as we follow the Corporal Works of Mercy — putting our faith into action, serving the less fortunate, and feeding those in desperate need of nutrition.
Box of Joy is a registered trademark of Cross Catholic Outreach.
Originally published May 2021. Last updated May 2026.
Donations from this campaign will be used to cover any expenditures for this project incurred through June 30, 2027, the close of our ministry’s fiscal year. In the event that more funds are raised than needed to fully fund the project, the excess funds, if any, will be used to meet the most urgent needs of the ministry.
