WITH backing from Beepat’s, the distributor of Nestle products (Maggi), and in collaboration with City Councillor Malcolm Ferreira, single mothers are now the beneficiaries of a three-week “Maggi, the power of a meal” programme.The initiative, promoting healthy, low-cost meals, was launch on Sunday at Carmel Secondary School at Sussex and Charles Streets, Georgetown, where tutorials were given by radio announcer Felix Robertson. The meals were prepared on site.

Ferreira related that he thought it was best to target single mothers so they would be able to pack a better lunch kit for their children by preparing low-cost healthy meals.

He said 40 mothers showed up from the Charlestown/Albouystown community to participate in the programme, but he was disappointed when only the mature moms utilised the opportunity.

The programme will be taken to Sophia and Mahaica on the weekends, and will run for three weeks at each location. It is aimed at sensitising young mothers on how to make the best of meals for their families through the preparation of low-cost healthy food, which they can themselves prepare even on a ‘tight’ budget.

Ferreira said the programme is also geared towards empowering women to have a balanced and healthy diet.

He noted that the cooking tutorials will last for three hours on the weekends, and a full complement of staffers from Beepat’s will be on hand to guide the participants.

On Sunday, the group of women prepared callaloo rice with steamed ripe plantains, using Maggi products and other local ingredients.

At the end of the programme, each participant would be given a hamper of Maggi products to assist them in the preparation of their meals.

Beepat’s, one of the leading product distributors in Guyana, has become a well-known household name in the country, distributing products from companies such as Nestle Caribbean Inc; Unilever; Bestfoods; Reckitt Benckiser; Heinz Company Limited/Complan Food Limited and others. The products they distribute can be found from within the smallest corner shops in the country areas to modern, large-scale supermarkets in major metropolitan areas.