Socio-Economic
Seed To Sustainability
Based on June 2023 survey findings of Social Weather Stations (SWS) the Second Quarter 2023 Social Weather Survey found that 10.4 percent of Filipino families experienced “involuntary hunger” at least once during the 2nd quarter of the year.
The 2022 National Expanded Survey of the Department of Science and Technology - Food and Nutrition Research Institute (DOST-FNRI) results, on the other hand, show that 2 out of 100 households, or 2%, have severe food insecurity, while 3 out of 10 households, or 33.4%, have moderate food insecurity.
The importance of nutrition for health has been acknowledged for millennia. Good nutrition is essential in keeping current and future generations healthy across the lifespan. According to DOST Secretary Renato Solidum, Jr. "Our country has successfully reduced underweight children and micronutrient deficiencies after almost five decades of being guided by these national plans to improve the food and nutrition situation of the Philippines. However, the country still faces challenges, such as the slow reduction of child stunting and the increasing prevalence of overweight and obesity."
During the launching of the Philippine Plan of Action for Nutrition (PPAN) 2023-2028, Assistant Secretary and Executive Director IV Azucena M. Dayanghirang explained that food-insecure households either sacrifice food quality and variety, reduce food quantity, skip meals, or consume no food for a day or more.
In connection with the PPAN, DOH Secretary Teodoro J. Herbosa called for public and private sector support. He implores other government agencies and the private sector to make their sectoral programs more nutrition-sensitive and prioritize the vulnerable groups of the populace. You each have a role in bringing about nutrition improvement whether in agriculture, health, trade, budget, finance, labor, or social welfare.
In the Philippines, the smallest sector of the society is the household. Mothers as part of our household are the ones taking care of the children. Their health is vulnerable, especially the lactating mothers.
Breastfeeding impacts families, communities, and the economy. There are serious health and economic consequences associated with not breastfeeding. Globally, the World Health Assembly (WHA) has set a target to increase the exclusive breastfeeding rate to 50% by 2025.
There are serious economic consequences to not breastfeeding. Currently, the Philippines suffers economic losses because only 34% of children are exclusively breastfed. These economic losses are the result of:
Higher health systems costs, as children and mothers develop illnesses that could have been prevented by breastfeeding practices;
Lost productivity, as children who were not breastfed are less likely to fully develop and fully contribute to the economy, and;
Higher household expenditures, as families need to purchase breastmilk substitutes like formula when they do not breastfeed their children
The Program
A partnership program of the E. Zobel Foundation and Mahalina Foundation, this is the sustainability plan for the Food Share Program beneficiaries of Kabisig ng Kalahi Inc.. These beneficiaries are lactating mothers wherein the program provide them rice and vegetable for three (3) months to help the family lessen their food expenses and secure food for the lactating mothers.
To continue this objective, this program will introduce organic natural farming to the mothers involved in the project. The beneficiaries will be provided with gardening materials and community learning sessions to help them make their gardens and eventually produce food for their tables.
The beneficiaries will have community learning sessions that will teach the importance of proper nutrition and producing food by organic natural farming to secure the safety of the food of their families. This project has also income augmentation potential if the beneficiaries have excess yield from their household consumption.
The kick-off of this program started in various communities in Barangay Sta. Ana, Calatagan, Batangas such as Sitio Calambuyan, Gawad Kalinga, Barangay Proper, and Palo Bandera.
The community learning sessions include topics such as:
Garden Maintenance
Soil Augmentation
Use of Natural Pesticides
Harvesting
Harvest Sharing
Community Learning Sessions and Visitations
The community learning sessions, coaching, and monitoring started in October 2023, and as of December 2023, they were able to consume a total of 4.25 kilograms worth of harvests of sitaw (string beans), ampalaya (bitter gourd), okra (lady's fingers), and patani (lima beans).
Organic Backyard Garden of the Project Beneficiaries
Feedback
"We are very happy since this is the first time that we planted and it grew. We are excited to have vegetables available in our backyard."
"This project helped guide us in the proper way of planting and taking care of the garden. It also taught us to be patient in taking care of the plants."
The community learning sessions, coaching, and monitoring started in October 2023, and as of December 2023, they were able to consume a total of 4.25 kilograms worth of harvests of sitaw (string beans), ampalaya (bitter gourd), okra (lady's fingers), and patani (lima beans).
The Sustainable Plan
The Foundation will continues implementing this program by going forward to the project plan such as seed saving and replication to other communities. Follow throughs and coaching are still on top of the Foundation's goal to these communities served for the project's sustainability that will also help reduce the cost for food for the table.
We encourage those individuals or organizations to participate in this social investment to help the communities we serve for the further enriching of their lives.
Our Partners
