Cebu City - The National Nutrition Council had its eyes on vegetables for the upcoming 38th year commemoration of Nutrition Month. The celebration will focus on the importance of vegetables in human lives in line with the theme “Pagkain ng gulay ugaliin, araw-araw itong ihain!”. Themonth-long observance will be kicked off with a simultaneous planting of vegetables in schools nationwide on 02 July 2012.
In Central Visayas, there will be a synchronized vegetable planting in schools, communities, hospitals and prisons dubbed “Vegetable Hour” at 8:00-9:00 a.m. on 02 July 2012. Four key areas were identified for the launch including the Mabolo Elementary School, Operation Second Chance, Barangay Mambaling and Vicente Sotto Medical Memorial Center. There will also be a vegetable cooking demo and fun learning activities for children during the Vegetable Hour. This will be followed by aVegetable Caravan passing through all the planting sites, then a Vegetable Parade of day care children garbed in vegetable costumes at the Lower Ground Floor, SM City Cebu and a Launching Program at the Event Center of SM City Cebu, all on 02 July 2012. A Veggie Festival will happen on 04-06 July 2012 at the Plaza Sugbu, Cebu City.
To add spice to the opening program, Ms. Regina Mercedes Lingaolingao of Cebu City will do cooking demonstration of her winning vegetable recipe during the recently concluded Nutri-Chef Challenge. Guest will be given a chance to taste her low cost, nutritious and easy to prepare Mixed Vegetable Omelette.
NNC strike a chord to parents or caregivers who must set the good example for children by eating vegetables themselves. Parents need to monitor their own eating habits so that their children will develop and keep healthy eating behavior for life. And also, vegetables should always part of the family meals, must be available when and where children want to eat them, attractive to children and should taste good.
Vegetable is given importance in this year’s Nutrition Month because Filipinos are eating less and less vegetables; vegetables as part of a healthy diet can help prevent major non-communicable diseases such as cancers, diabetes and heart diseases; consumption of vegetables can help prevent micronutrient deficiencies; and having vegetable gardens in the households can increase the supply and availability of vegetables for families.
The Nutrition Month celebration aims to increase vegetable consumption as part of healthy diet to address micronutrient deficiencies and non-communicable diseases, promote vegetable gardening as a source of additional food and income and increase demand for vegetables to help local vegetable farmers.//Arcile Padrigao, CTU - Devcom Intern
