TRACY, Calif. –
Employees at Defense Logistics Agency Distribution San Joaquin, California, have supplied over 65,000 heat-and-serve meals to warfighters and first responders in the coronavirus pandemic.
The Unitized Group Rations team assembles the pre-prepared, shelf-stable meals as tray-pack components in hermetically sealed steam table containers. The group assembles about 21,000 modules totaling over 1 million meals each month.
UGRs come in three breakfast and 14 lunch or dinner varieties. Complete with disposable items like cups, trays and trash bags, UGRs contain enough to feed 50 people. Fresh items like bread, milk and fresh produce are provided separately.
Laborer Edward Garcia said he is proud to support service members.
“We as a team have a special mission in providing meals to the warfighter,” Garcia said. “I was a warfighter for nine years in the U.S. Army and take pride in coming to work and doing my part in making sure the warfighters are taken care of.”
The team is adhering to Defense Department guidelines on wearing cloth face coverings, and a third shift has been introduced so employees can maintain 6 feet of distance from one another.
UGR Branch Chief Chris Cingcon commended team members for their unwavering mission support.
“We were impacted by some absences due to the pandemic, and we have continued to be resilient and complete the requirement no matter what obstacles we face,” she said. “Even though there was fear of the unknown, managers, supervisors and employees continued to come together to complete the mission requirements.”