CDO-Foodsphere serves 1.2M meals to undernourished children

MANILA, Philippines - The latest national nutrition survey reveals that 33 per cent of Filipino preschoolers, or one in three students, is underweight. About eight percent of school children are moderately and severely underweight, while 20 percent are mildly underweight.

Sadly, these statistics impact mostly on the students’ ability to learn.

A separate survey also says that iron deficiency anemia is the most widespread nutritional deficiency in the Philippines, affecting 20 million Filipinos, including 30.8 percent of school children and 26.7 percent of pre-schoolers.

To help address the problem, Jerome Ong, CDO-Foodsphere Inc. president, says the company initiated a campaign to help restore undernourished children to normal health.

“Giving back is part of the company’s core values, and hunger mitigation is the foremost advocacy of Odyssey Foundation,” he said.

Driven by its mission to help eradicate children malnutrition in the country, CDO-Foodsphere launched the Gabay Nutrisyon program in June 2005 at Paso de Blas, Valenzuela City. The program was administered by Odyssey Foundation, the food firm’s CSR arm which serves as the catalyst for social development.

Gabay Nutrisyon caters to children aged two to six years old. After field visits and validation of children’s data to validate incidence of malnutrition, Odyssey Foundation works hand in hand with the local government unit to lay the groundwork for the two- to three-month feeding program.

Community volunteers are then mobilized and oriented on their day-to-day task of assisting in the implementation of the project.

The meals served to the children are prepared by CDO Foodsphere or community partners. Aside from the meals served daily to the kids, vitamins are also provided by United Laboratories Inc., a program partner of Odyssey Foundation in the last 10 years.

“By tapping our network of partner organizations, Gabay Nutrisyon is replicated in other parts of the country. To further extend our reach, we give support to the supplemental feeding of other humanitarian and social welfare institutions through products and check donations,” Ong shared.

From Valenzuela City, the Gabay Nutrisyon program has expanded across the country.

“Up north, we have Sta. Ana, Cagayan under the parish of St. Anthony de Padua and Jaro, Leyte in the south as project beneficiaries. As of June 30, 2015, the program has served 1.2 million meals that have benefited over 19,000 undernourished children in impoverished communities around the country,” Ong said.

The program has been administered in 65 barangays and communities.

Project partners include parishioners, local government units, humanitarian organizations and private sector foundations. These partners include the local government units of Valenzuela City, Malvar in Batanagas, Unilab, ABS-CBN Foundation, Gawag Kalinga, Holy Trinity Home for Children, Jollibee Group Foundation, and GMA Kapuso Foundation.

“Combating children malnutrition in its early stage can have a lasting impact on their lives as they grow and become productive members of society,” Ong said.