The contest was held at DOH- Center for Health Development Regional Office 3 Covered Court. The activity was well-attended by guests, judges and contestants with their team leaders/nutrition program coordinators.

The opening program was graced by Assistant Regional Director Edna Abcede, ARD of CHD Region III representing Regional Director Leonita Gorgolon. She expressed her deep appreciation of the theme related to the contest because she believed that Kapampangans are good in cooking delicious dishes. This time, the contest highlights the importance of vegetables as one of the nutritious foods especially for young children. Considering that many of these young children are thin while others are obese, it is high time to promote intensively the consumption of vegetables, presented in aesthetic manner. “Hitsura pa lang, dapat ay katakam-takam na’’. She hoped that winning recipes will not only be recognized in the region but also be applied at the households to serve its purpose.

NPC Magpantay explained the background of the contest highlighting that the winning recipes of the Region 3 together with the other regions nationwide will be compiled into a recipe book to be printed and launched during the Nutrition Month in July. The recipe book will be designed to develop low-cost, easy to prepare, nutritious vegetable dishes. This will provide a venue to showcase each region’s traditional recipes and varied ways of cooking vegetables.

The copies of the recipe book will be distributed to Pantawid Pamilya beneficiaries or CCT as well as to local nutrition workers as an IEC material in order to improve vegetable consumption and improve nutrition of the poorest families.

The six winning participants are BNSes, Provincial/City RIC president, CNPC and RIC District Coordinator.

The judges are members of the Regional Technical Working Group/Regional Nutrition Evaluation Team of Region III. They are Ms. Lerma S. Ocampo, RIC Regional Coordinator and Agriculturist II of the DA-RFU III, Ms. Margarita S. Natividad, Nutritionist-Dietitian II of CHD-R03 and Ms. Angelita Q. Parungao, Provincial Science & Technology Director, Bulacan Province and former RNET of DOST. Ms. Ocampo is a Home Economist while Ms. Natividad and Ms. Parungao are both nutritionist-dietitians.

Before the contest proper, Ms. Ocampo, serving as the chair of the panel of judges, announced that since the organizers requires for the information on the cost of the recipe, the judges agreed that the criteria should include the cost and made the following adjustments on the score: Palatability/Taste –15 %, Cost   – 10 %, Use of nutritious ingredients–25 %, Originality-20%, Visual Appeal     –  15 % and Ease of preparation with a total of 100 %. 

The prizes include Certificate of Participation and cash awards handed by Assistant Regional Director Paz Mones of the Department of Agriculture Regional Office III, together with the judges and NPC Magpantay. Director Mones, representing RNC Chair and DA-RFU Regional Director Andrew B. Villacorta, delivered an inspirational message and shared that she was happy to be part of this nutrition activity, being a former member of the RN-PET of Region I. “Tamang –tama ang theme natin, di kumpleto kung walang gulay ang pagkain natin sa ating tahanan”. The DA-RFU III is helping farmers and households to produce vegetable by providing seeds and garden tools. Rootcrops like “Kamote”and Cassava and “adlay”- a local term for a kind of indigenous vegetable consumed by other people in Region I, which are also worth producing to help sustain self-sufficiency. Trainings of RICs and school personnel are also conducted in all provinces in Region III to help households and schools establish and maintain backyard and community vegetable gardens. While other agencies promote consumption of vegetables, the DA focuses on food security and sufficiency.

In her closing Remarks, NPC Magpantay congratulated all the winners and thanked the participants and guests for supporting the activity. She also thanked CHD Region III for providing the venue.