Veasna and Sydney are a young couple filled with dreams and hopes for a better future. They set up a business along with Veasna’s two brothers, to cook and sell food at their friendly restaurant in front of a busy garment factory in Phnom Penh.
But Veasna and Sydney strive to always do better, so they joined CARE’s Food Vendor Program to learn how to improve the quality of their food through better hygiene practices and more nutritious diets.
Through hard work and discipline, Veasna and Sydney are providing healthier food options for garment factory workers at their workplace.
Veasna learned to cook at his aunt’s restaurant, but now that they have set up their own business, they are responsible for every step of the job!Here, Veasna is cooking outside their house in Phnom Penh.
Sydney also works at a garment factory, but as she is heavily pregnant now, she stays at home and helps her husband cook the meals to be sold at the factories. After picking the best produce from the markets, Sydney helps preparing a well-balanced and Sydney is 9-months pregnant and will soon deliver her second child. She understands the importance of looking after herself during pregnancy, but she says finding healthy options outside of her workplace is very difficult. “I don’t trust the food that is sold in front of my factory, but I have no choice”, she says. “Now that I’m pregnant, I have to look after myself better. So I have to walk further and the food is more expensive, but at least I know it’s cleaner, better for my baby and me.”
Thanks to CARE’s Food Vendor Program, Veasna and Sydney are more competitive and their food is healthier, and it shows on their sales! “Now that we have joined CARE’s training, the factory workers know our food is safer, and of good quality!”, they say.
"Before I can sell my food for two pots and right now increase to four pots, they are looking for us when they want to buy food. My business is grower as I have clients", they added.
While Sydney waits to give birth to their second baby, she helps her husband around the house, cooking healthy and nutritious food to sell.Thanks to their hard work and with the help of CARE’s training, this couple is helping improve the lives of other workers like Sydney around the factories!
CARE's support to Veasna & Sydney and the other food vendors around factories are funded by GlaxoSmithKline as part of their Frontline Health Worker Programme.
Learn more about the Healthy Women, Healthy Workplace project >
Photo credits: Erika Pineros