NFA intensifies campaign for 1 Million Food Guardian volunteers

THE NATIONAL Food Authority (NFA) has intensified its campaign to gather one million Food Guardian volunteers through the social media to serve as advocates of food security.

“Food security is everyone’s right and responsibility,” NFA administrator Renan B. Dalisay-said, noting that the world is commemorating on October 16, 2015, the 35th World Food Day, a special time for people across the globe to ponder on the most basic need of humanity.

This year is also the 70th founding anniversary of the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), the oldest specialized agency of the United Nations, which focuses its endeavors on enhancing the capability of nations to improve agricultural productivity and efficiencies to address the ever-growing demand for food of a constantly increasing population.

FAO had decreed the observance of World Food Day in 1980 to fight starvation and hunger among peoples of the world. This year’s theme is “Social Protection and Agriculture: Breaking the Cycle of Rural Poverty.”

Here in the Philippines, results of the Social Weather Stations (SWS) survey on the first quarter of this year show that the hunger rate fell to 13.5 percent, the lowest recorded in the past 10 years. This new hunger rate was 3.7 points lower than the 17.2 percent recorded in December 2014, and also the lowest since May 2005 when the hunger rate was at 12 percent.

“There is a brewing clamor around the world to fight for food security and eradicate hunger. Though the figures show a positive change, it is not yet enough. We envision the kind of development where no one is left behind hungry. We must continue to tread the right track in addressing the most important responsibility of government: to ensure that our people will be food secure, where rice, our staple, is available, affordable, accessible, and safe, “Dalisay said.

The NFA is taking its role of being the guardian of food security seriously-giving it equal weight as national security itself, Dalisay explained. “This is the essence of our #1for100iNFAntry campaign. The agency is forming a proactive army of 1 million food guardian volunteers who will advocate and perpetuate the best practices for ensuring food security for the 100 million Filipinos: by not wasting rice, by helping ensure that rice is available, accessible, affordable and safe, and by following the correct food handling procedures to ensure that rice is safe for consumers.”

Based on research done by the Philippine Rice Research Institute, every individual is wasting an average of 2 tablespoons of rice, which becomes 3.3 kg annually and at 100 million population it adds up to 330,000 MT per year. This translates to a cost of P27 M per day or P10 B a year.

“By simply being a Food Guardian, and living it, and influencing others to be one, we can each contribute to having a country with food security, where everyone get to enjoy the right to food--- the most basic right of humanity,” Dalisay said.

The enlisted volunteers will be given training and workshops on the industry of grains and food security. They could be tapped to help solve problems in rice rebagging, smuggling, and wastage.

Since the launch of the campaign a month ago during the NFA’s Anniversary week, about 100, 000 food guardians from different sectors have already signed up.

Interested food guardian volunteers can sign up at http:foodguardian.me where they could get their free digital ID.