Mapo-gu Filial Piety Meal Truck Starts Strong... Supplying Meals to 15 New Locations

From the 22nd, 15 Additional Institutions Providing Filial Piety Meals... Expanding Use by Over 500 Elderly Living Alone
District Opens Side Dish Factory on the 15th to Establish Hub-Type Mobile Meal Service System... Efficient Expansion and Operation
After Pilot Operation at Senior Centers in the First Half, Full Expansion in the Second Half... Securing a Total of 1,500 Beneficiaries
Park Gang-su, Mayor of Mapo-gu, “Successful Operation and Expansion of Filial Piety Meals Thanks to Volunteers and Sponsors”

Park Gang-su, the mayor of Mapo District, is delivering food made at a side dish factory.

With the opening of the ‘Hyo-do Bapsang Side Dish Factory’ in Mapo-gu (Mayor Park Gang-su), the number of institutions providing Hyo-do Bapsang meals has expanded to a total of 31 starting from the 22nd. As a result, 1,000 local senior citizens will be able to use the Hyo-do Bapsang service in the first half of the year.

The resident-participation Hyo-do Bapsang is a representative senior welfare project of Mapo-gu that protects the health and safety of local seniors aged 75 and older by providing lunch, checking on their well-being, and monitoring their health, thereby preventing isolation. It has received high praise both domestically and internationally.

The ‘Side Dish Factory’ is a facility capable of preparing meals for up to 1,000 people per day, which are provided to the Hyo-do Bapsang meal institutions. It was established with the goal of building a hub-type mobile meal service system that can significantly expand the number of users without massive budget investment.

Following the existing 16 locations, six new meal institutions began operations with the opening of the Side Dish Factory on the 15th, and an additional nine meal institutions started operating on the 22nd. Warm meals freshly prepared at the Side Dish Factory are delivered to these 15 meal institutions via the Hyo-do Bapsang meal trucks.

The district selects meal institutions based on religious organizations and non-profit corporations equipped with meal facilities that can operate six or more days a week. The district plans to continuously support these institutions with manpower utilizing accompanying jobs, senior jobs, and volunteers.

According to the 2023 Mapo Social Survey, the area with the highest satisfaction in Mapo’s district administration was ‘welfare (36.8%),’ and among senior welfare services, ‘expansion of meal support (31%)’ was identified as the most needed. This indicates high resident satisfaction and expectations for Hyo-do Bapsang.

Along with operating the Hyo-do Bapsang meal institutions, the district plans to pilot the Hyo-do Bapsang service at the Seongsan 2-dong Murieul Saemaeul Senior Center in the first half of the year to expand it to existing senior centers. In the second half, the service will be fully expanded to local senior centers, providing Hyo-do Bapsang meals to a total of 1,500 seniors.

On the 19th, the district held a launch ceremony for Hyo-do Bapsang volunteers to encourage and thank the 500 volunteers who are the unsung heroes of the service, with about 400 people attending from 16 neighborhoods in Mapo-gu. At the event, a choir performance of the ‘Hyo-do Bapsang Theme Song,’ written by Mayor Park Gang-su himself, moved the volunteers, followed by a volunteer certificate presentation ceremony.

At the proclamation ceremony, Park Gang-su, Mayor of Mapo-gu, said, “The greatest driving force behind the successful operation and expansion of Hyo-do Bapsang has been the volunteers and sponsors.” He added, “We will do our best to operate Hyo-do Bapsang more efficiently through the Side Dish Factory so that all seniors in Mapo-gu can enjoy a healthier and happier old age.”