Established in 2013 through a collaboration between Maxim’s Group and Baptist Oi Kwan Social Service (BOKSS), Kiddy Heart Canteen has been a vital service that offers hot meals to low-income families. Initially focusing on providing nutritious two-dish-one-soup dinners, the Kiddy Heart Canteen has continuously expanded its offerings over the past decade to better support its beneficiaries. Recently, the services have extended to Mong Kok, providing warmth and support to even more families.

Kiddy Heart Canteen plays a significant role in the community by addressing the nutritional needs and health of underprivileged primary school students and their families. In addition to the existing canteens in Tsuen Wan and Yau Ma Tei, a new location was added in Mong Kok last September, further extending care and support to additional communities. From September to December 2023, Maxim's Group provided nearly 3,800 free and healthy breakfasts to beneficiaries each month.

Carey, the Team Leader of Hot Meal Service at BOKSS, said: "Kiddy Heart Canteen is a small community within the larger community. It provides peace of mind to low-income parents who are unable to dedicate time to take care of their children due to work commitments. Simultaneously, it helps children grow up happily and meet their nutritional needs. In the Canteen, we also organize after-school activities to enhance students’ academic and social skills, fostering a sense of warmth and community."

Last September, Maxim's Group and Kiddy Heart Canteen launched the charity campaign “Happy School, Happy Meal” through the “eatie” mobile app. Participants in the virtual world earned rewards by by completing missions and challenges, which were then converted into real-life food donations to Kiddy Heart Canteen. This campaign not only transformed online players’ efforts into tangible support for underprivileged families, but also fostered connections among individuals from different sectors in the community. In total, over 16,000 healthy meals and bread were donated to Kiddy Heart Canteen through the campaign.

Tsuen Wan’s Kiddy Heart Canteen recently organised its first birthday party after the COVID-19 pandemic. Nearly a hundred of children and parents from low-income families were invited to celebrate the Mid-Autumn Festival. Maxim’s Group prepared delicate birthday cakes, mooncakes and mini cookies for the participants, spreading love and care throughout the community. Through various games and activities, the party strengthened the supportive network among members.

Last year, Maxim’s Group’s Genki Sushi successfully held "Little Chef Sushi Workshop”. Twelve pairs of children and parents from Kiddy Heart Canteen participated in the event and learned the art of sushi making from professional sushi chef. Participants like Peter, who has had his first sushi-making experience, said, "I’m very happy that there’re so many activities available [in the Canteen]. I’ve also made some new friends. I’m very grateful to Kiddy Heart Canteen and Genki Sushi for giving me such an unforgettable experience!"

Maxim's Group also collaborated with Greeners Action to organize a mooncake box upcycling workshop. Participants learned about waste management in Hong Kong and the concept of upcycling by transforming waste into valuable items. Tracy, one of the participants, mentioned, “This workshop demonstrated creative ways to reuse waste with imagination.”

Moving forward, Maxim's Group will continue to organize diverse range of caring activities, promoting sustainable community development and creating a more harmonious society.

With meticulous planning and design, acts of benevolence such as waste reduction and donation can benefit volunteers, beneficiaries and even the environment.

Apart from a continuing devotion to reducing food waste, Maxim’s also brings sustainability elements to community events, forging connections between society and environment, and promoting care in return. One example is the gifting of upcycled products made in waste reduction workshops to the underprivileged. This simple act not only encourages engagement from the volunteers, but becomes an inspiration for more green ideas and provides comfort to the recipients: a perfect example of one action with benefits to multiple stakeholders. 

In July, three workshops were held in cooperation with NGO partner Eco-Greenergy. The sessions spread the knowledge of upcycling coffee grounds to different communities and partners, including Maxim’s employees, corporate partners and VTC students. 

Led by a tutor, participants used coffee grounds and daily tools to create one-of-a-kind products such as tote bags, shawls and small towels, all with dazzling tie-dye patterns. Participants experienced first-hand the possibilities of coffee grounds in their day-to-day lives, changing their perceptions towards food waste. 

Gordon Chan, Sustainability Officer at Jardines, was one of the workshop participants. He was delighted that items made there were to be delivered as gifts to the children at Kiddy Heart Canteen. He hoped the children would be pleased by these hearty gifts and find them useful.

Maxim’s Group co-founded Kiddy Heart Canteen with Baptist Oi Kwan Social Service in 2013, and it has since worked constantly to feed children and families in need. To date, it has provided 230,000 meals at a discounted price of $10. A registered dietitian from Maxim’s ensures that each meal set includes main, vegetable and soup courses to provide balanced nutrition. Anson (alias), one of the beneficiaries exclaimed: “Thank you Maxim’s for this tote bag! I know the colours came from coffee grounds. My mother uses it at home and it is both pretty and practical!” 

Peann Tam, Business Development Director of Eco-Greenergy, shared “These coffee dyeing workshops were held at Maxim’s invitation, and the coffee grounds we used were collected from Starbucks. This hands-on experience for staffs and business partners provided a practical and relevant example of incorporating green concepts into their day-to-day lives”. 

Tam emphasised that the second life of coffee grounds is no longer constrained to fertiliser, but dyeing material for textile products. There are few things more fulfilling than using one’s own hands to transform ‘rubbish’ into something new and useful.

No deed is too small to catalyse change. Memorable experiences that spark awareness of waste reduction and environment protection are the foundation of promoting circular economy to all of society, and even to the next generation.