“Tutok Kainan” Supplementation Program to solve malnutrition

Cabinet Secretary Karlo Alexei B. Nograles ceremonially handed the food package to  a pregnant woman during the NNC launch of " Tutok Kainan" Supplemental Program.

QUEZON CITY, Nov. 24 (PIA) --The National Nutrition Council (NNC) headed by Executive Director Azucena M. Dayanghirang, in cooperation with the government’s Task Force Zero Hunger  program of the launched the Tutok Kainan Supplementation Program to support the First 1000 Days of a child’s life, prevent babies from stunting, and hasten the reduction of malnutrition in the country. 

Nutrition Director Dayanghirang emphasized that the supplementation of food program focuses on nutritionally at-risk pregnant women in the third trimester before they give birth and 6-23 month-old stunted and wasted children. She explained the importance of exclusive breastfeeding and right complementary feeding for the first two years of a child to prevent stunting otherwise it would be too late to improve on a child’s physical and mental development.

“Along with other nutrition intervention especially on food security, health services, and psycho-social stimulation, or any learning, we can prevent stunting in the first two years,” Dayanghirang said.

The program will be implemented for a period of ninety (90) days in 182 cities/municipalities and 12 provinces as pilot targeted areas. Food commodity scheme will be a combination of ready-to-eat food and rice-meals and snacks, preferably food formulation by Food and Nutrition Research Institute (FNRI). 

Food preparation will be based on the NCC cycle menu.  Food commodities from NNC will be delivered to the LGUs at least monthly for non-highly perishable items and daily/biweekly for fresh food items through NNC-partner suppliers.

The barangay will set a specific time every day including weekends for the centralized food preparation and distribution or pick-up of the cooked meals to the beneficiaries either through cluster feeding, house to house ration, or pick-up of cooked meal/snacks depending on local situations.

Meanwhile, Cabinet Secretary Karlo Nograles pledged the government’s support to the Tutok Kainan Program under the Task Force on  Zero Hunger program, which formulated the National Food Policy of the government. 

 “Tandaan po natin na si Pangulong Duterte mismo in his speech at the United General Assembly kamakailan lamang, siya mismo ang nagsabi that the Philippines despite the COVID 19 pandemic, remains committed to our Sustainable Development Goals ng United Nation at kasama dyan ang SDG 2: Zero Hunger by 2030. Kaya naman po even before COVID happened binuo ni Pangulong Duterte the Executive Order 101, ang Task Force on Zero Hunger.”   (Remember that President Duterte himself, in his speech at the United General Assembly recently said that the Philippines, despite the COVID 19 pandemic, remains committed to the Sustainable Development Goals (SDG)  of the  United Nation and under that is the SDG 2: Zero Hunger by 2030.  That is why even amid COVID pandemic, President Duterte issued Executive Order 101, creating the Task Force on Zero Hunger.) 

He explained that hunger is too broad and dimensional that the Task Force divided the challenges of hunger into six pillars resulting in six key result areas which will lead to achieving the Zero Hunger program: 1) policy that drives the government to end hunger; support to increase farmers and fisherfolks production of food; 3) end all forms of nutrition; 4)  accessibility to quality and safe food through urban and community gardening; 5) sustainability and resiliency in times of ‘disruptions” in food cycle and food system where the government can readily response to the needs and; 6)people participation, especially the private sector so that every Filipino would contribute to the hunger problem.

“This  (Tutok Kainan Program) is the program that will show to the people of the Philippines and  the world  that we are very serious in implementing the policy of our national food policy and really making sure that we implement correctly the objectives and goals enshrined in the First 1000 Days law. This dietary supplementation is really an approach to address insufficient and poor quality food and nutrient intake of pregnant women and young children to prevent their undernutrition,” Nograles  added.(ARR/PIA-IDPD)


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