SAN JOSE, Antique — The National Food Authority - Antique is unrelenting in its campaign to use iron-fortified rice especially in communities with high incidence of malnutrition.
Accredited rice retailers of NFA are encouraged to continue selling iron-fortified rice at P27 per kilo.
The province of Antique, according to NFA Information Officer Gazelle Jamandron, has 97 accredited rice retail outlets who are selling iron-fortified rice.
Iron-fortified rice is also used in supplemental feeding programs in day care centers provincewide, she said.
NFA manager, Hedy Jardeleza, in partnership with different local government units and concerned agencies of national government has launched the advocacy campaign in different municipalities to increase the use of iron-fortified rice in every household. Iron-fortified rice is good for good circulation and strengthens the body.
This is a continuing program of NFA until various communities in the province are reached, Jamandron noted.
Campaign on the use iron-fortified rice is in consonance with Republic Act 8976 or the Philippine Food Fortification Act of 2000 which provides for the fortification of the country’s staple food to prevent hidden hunger and malnutrition.
The following require mandatory fortification: rice with iron, wheat flour with vitamin A and iron, refined sugar with vitamin A, and cooking oil also with vitamin A.
This is in response to the nutritional deficiency problems in the country based on previous nutrition surveys. These include deficiency in energy, iron, vitamin A, iodine, thiamine, and riboflavin.
Food fortification hopes to compensate for the inadequacies in the Filipino diet, based on present-day needs as measured using the most recent Recommended Daily Allowance. (JSC/MLG/PSM-PIA6 Antique)