The time required to obtain certificates for arranging children's meals at the "milk kitchen" has been reduced by 2.5 times.

      02 October 2025 17:44 Society Nizhny Novgorod residents can obtain a certificate of the average per-capita family income — needed to provide full nutrition to children under three years old through special "milk kitchens" upon doctors' recommendation — more quickly. The service provision time has been reduced from 18 to 7 days thanks to the work of the regional center for the optimization of public services based at the Nizhny Novgorod Region Multifunctional Center (MFC). Full free nutrition through the milk kitchens is provided to children in their first year of life if the family's income does not exceed two subsistence minimums, and to children in their second year of life if the family's income does not exceed one subsistence minimum per capita. Those who have permanent or temporary registration in Nizhny Novgorod can apply for the service. If a family is registered with a social protection agency and its average per-capita income is below the subsistence minimum per person, the certificate for receiving food will be issued on the day of application. "In recent years we have been actively working to make any state and municipal services as accessible as possible for all residents. Interaction with government authorities should not require citizens to spend huge amounts of time and effort. In particular, we strive to simplify and speed up the provision of services to support families. Thus, the time to obtain certificates for arranging food for children at the 'milk kitchen' has been reduced by more than half," emphasized Deputy Governor of the Nizhny Novgorod Region Egor Polyakov. The attending district pediatrician sends the referral for providing a child with dairy products to the milk kitchen. To use the service online, the applicant must log in to Gosuslugi, select "Government Authorities" in the top menu, then — in the "Regional" section — find the "Ministry of Social Policy of the Nizhny Novgorod Region" card and among the services choose "Issuance of certificates of the average per-capita family income for the free provision of food to children in their first and second years of life through special feeding points (milk kitchens) upon doctors' recommendation in the urban district of the city of Nizhny Novgorod." Then follow the instructions to obtain the service. When applying for the service electronically, it is not necessary to provide a Russian citizen passport, a marriage certificate (if the marriage was registered in Russia) or an unemployment certificate. All necessary information is requested through interagency interaction. "If the application is submitted through the MFC, only one visit to the office is required. After that the applicant only needs to visit the milk kitchen itself to receive dairy products," explained Svetlana Musarskaya, director of the Nizhny Novgorod Region MFC. In Nizhny Novgorod, the structure of the municipal budgetary healthcare institution (MBUZ) "Milk Kitchen" includes three milk kitchens — Avtozavodskaya, Nizhegorodskaya and Sormovskaya — as well as 45 milk distribution points located in all districts of the city. "Over the past five years, on the instructions of the city head Yuri Shalabaev, a large-scale modernization of the milk kitchens and distribution points has been carried out, and new ones have opened, including in new residential complexes where many families with small children live. The updated equipment has allowed us to increase the volume of products several times. The assortment expands every year. For example, our specialists have started making natural cheeses, launched the production of fruit-flavored yogurts, developed a recipe for a healthy and tasty drink based on milk whey, and many other tasty and natural products," said Galina Gurenko, director of the city department of social policy. When visiting MFC branches, residents of the region can make an appointment in advance. To do this, they must submit an application on the Nizhny Novgorod Region MFC portal or contact the call center at: 8 (831) 422-14-21. Recall that the development of government online services for the convenience of citizens is part of the national project "Data Economy and Digital Transformation of the State," which has been in effect in Russia since 1 January 2025 by order of President Vladimir Putin. NIA "Nizhny Novgorod" has a Telegram channel. Subscribe to stay informed about major events, exclusive materials and timely information. Copyright © 1999—2025 NIA "Nizhny Novgorod". When reprinting, a hyperlink to NIA "Nizhny Novgorod" is required. This resource may contain material intended for ages 18+.