LOW-COST BABY FOOD. Members of the Barangay Nutrition Scholars Association of Odiongan, Romblon work at the Complementary Food Production Facility on Friday (Nov. 10, 2023), churning out "Nutri Gold Curls" from a machine provided by the Food and Nutrition Research Institute. Department of Science and Technology officials said the facility will help address kids' malnutrition in the town and beyond. (Photo courtesy of DOST-Romblon Director Marcelina Servañez)
ODIONGAN, Romblon – The Department of Science and Technology (DOST) and the municipal government here have partnered in boosting the operations of a factory whose sole function is to manufacture low-cost baby food for the town’s undernourished children.
In an interview, Marcelina Servañez, DOST provincial director, said the Complementary Food Production Facility’s (CFPF) blessing and inauguration on Friday marks the start of large-scale operations of the factory that has been churning out baby food in a limited capacity since 2017.
She noted that the CFPF enhancement was made possible through funding from the municipal government, equipment provided by the Food and Nutrition Research Institute (FNRI), and technology developed by DOST-Mimaropa scientists.
The DOST official said that the plant manufactures only two varieties of complementary baby food – “Nutri Gold Instant Food” which is made from rice, mongo beans and sesame seeds, and “Nutri Gold Curls,” a junk food replacement made from rice and mongo beans.
“(The DOST’s) Malnutrition Reduction Program is a science and technology-based solution to address malnutrition in selected provinces with high prevalence of malnutrition among infants and young children. In Odiongan, six out of 10 kids were malnourished before, but now I think it’s only three out of 10,” Servañez told the Philippine News Agency.
She said the CFPF will be operated by the members of the Barangay Nutrition Scholars (BNS) Association, a group of volunteers representing each of the town’s 25 barangays.
The BNS, who will only receive a modest honorarium for their labors, have been fully trained to operate the equipment provided by the FNRI to manufacture the low-cost, high-nutrition baby food.
The total cost of establishing the CFPF is slightly over PHP2.1 million, Servañez said. (PNA)
