Sa isang katlo ng mga kabahayan sa Pilipinas na hindi makaya ng isang diyeta na nakakatugon sa mga pangangailangan sa nutrisyon at pinagkakasya ng pamahalaan ang limitadong mga mapagkukunan upang matugunan ang mga hamon na hatid ng pandemya ng coronavirus diseases 2019 (COVID-19), sinabi ni Cabinet Secretary Karlo Nograles nitong Miyerkules na ginagamit ang agham at teknolohiya upang mapunan ang agwat ng nutrisyon at mas mahusay na mabigyan ang mga batang Pilipino ng malusog na pagkain.

“The nutribun is an example of the science-driven solutions the government is pursuing to address hunger and malnutrition,” sinabi ni Nograles.

Ang Nutribun ay isang ready-to-eat bread na ipinamahagi sa supplementary feeding programs para labanan ang child malnutrition noong 1970s.

Sinabi ni Nograles na binago ng Food and Nutrition Research Institute (FNRI) ang mga sangkap upang makabuo ng isang Enhanced Nutribun na mas masarap, mas nakapagpapalusog, at mas malambot.

Ang paggawa ng pinahusay na nutribun ay naaayon sa mga inisyu ng Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) at Department of Education (DepEd) sa supplementary feeding programs at malusog at masustansiyang food packs para sa pamilya sa panahon ng community quarantine o iba pang mga katulad na emerhensiya.

Sa Online Soft Launch ng Enhanced Nutribun na inorganisa ng DOST and FNRI, Nograles said the government recognizes that “reducing the nutrition gap” is a top priority even as it grapples with the adverse impacts of the Covid-19 outbreak.

“In fact, this has become an even more urgent concern given that the incomes of many families have been affected by the quarantines in place because of the pandemic,” sinabi ni Nograles, na namumuno rin sa Zero Hunger Task Force ng gobyerno.

Ikinalulungkot ni Nograles na ang nabawasangnmga kita “will mean families will have to find ways to make ends meet, and in the process many of them have to cut down their food budgets”.

“Not only is the quantity of their food intake affected, but the quality of the food they consume. In these situations, children suffer the most as malnutrition and undernutrition can affect the development of the child,” babala ng dating mambabatas mula sa Davao.

“Given this, the challenge is how do we provide for the nutritional needs of these kids so that we can prevent the consequences of undernutrition like stunting? The Enhanced Nutribun is seen as one answer––one way we can achieve #GoodbyeGutom and Sana Tall, Sana All,” sinabi ni Nograles, na sinipi ang tema ng National Nutrition Month, na ipinagdiriwang tuwing Hulyo ng bawat taon.

Ayon sa Fill the Nutrient Gap na inihanda ng World Food Program at DOST-FNRI, kaunting pag-unlad ang nagawa sa pagtugon sa undernutrition, and overnutrition.. Ito, sabi ng pag-aaral

“hinders the country’s potential for social and economic development” dahil “30 percent of children under the age of 5 years (4 million children) are stunted and unlikely to reach their full mental and physical potential.”

Idinagdag ng pag-aaral na “despite overall economic growth, the percentage of stunted children has not reduced in 15 years due to several factors including poverty, natural and man-made disasters, low consumer demand for nutritious food, agriculture policies focused predominantly on rice self-sufficiency, low prioritization from government agencies to address nutrition, and limited commitment and capacity of local government units to deliver nutrition interventions.”