April 16, 2020

often hear these statements from Nanay Miling, “Paano ko pagkakasyahin ang budget ko sa sobrang taas na ng mga bilihin? Kailangan kong makaisip ng isang lutuin na sakto sa budget ko at pwedeng pakainin ang limang miembro ng pamilya”.

The Lutong FNRI: Recipes for a Family of Five developed by the Department of Science and Technology’s Food and Nutrition Research Institute (DOST-FNRI), will turn the worries of Nanay Miling on meal planning for her family into joy and excitement. This recipe book features 56 meals consisting of 65 recipes for lunch and dinner. The price of each recipe is worth P22.50 to 300.00 suited for a family of five. To display variety of menu offered, color coding of recipes was done as follows: Pork-red, Chicken-yellow, Fish-green, Legumes-blue, Seafood-orange and the limited inclusion of Beef due to its high cost-purple. Each recipe shows the total cost, cost per serving, serving size, estimated energy and protein content per serving, ingredients and procedure.

For Nanay Miling and to all mothers who are looking for nutritious and affordable meals, watch KAIN Na! a TV show of Cabinet Secretary Karlo Alexei Nograles every Saturday, from 10:30-11:00 AM, PTV 4 where DOST Secretary Fortunato de la Pena discusses the nutritional contribution of the featured recipe “pork humba with okra”. Tentative airing of this episode will be on February 22 or 29, 2020. Pork Humba with Okra is one of recipes included in the Lutong FNRI Recipe Book.

For more information on food and nutrition, contact: Dr. Mario V. Capanzana, Director, Food and Nutrition Research Institute, Department of Science and Technology, General Santos Avenue, Bicutan, Taguig City; Telephone/ Fax Nos: 8837-2934 or 837-3164; Direct Line: 8839-1839; DOST Trunk Line: 8837-2071-82 local 2296 or 2284; e-mail: mvc@fnri.dost.gov.ph or at mar_v_c@yahoo.com; DOST-FNRI website: http://www.fnri.dost.gov.ph. Like our Facebook page at facebook.com/FNRI.DOST or follow our Twitter account at twitter.com/FNRI_DOST. (DOST-FNRI S & T Media Service: Press Release – IDELIA G. GLORIOSO, SUPVG. SRS)

Yummy meals for healthier kids

Teacher Erly is a longtime teacher in one of the public schools in Metro Manila. She is assigned to manage the feeding program at the school. For Teacher Erly, it is difficult to manage a feeding program because she has to feed malnourished children for 120 days. You usually hear this statement from Teacher Erly: “Sana madagdagan pa itong mga masustansyang recipes na aking ginagamit sa feeding program para di magsawa ang mga bata, at higit sa lahat ay gumanda ang kanilang kalagayang pang-nutrisyon”.

The Department of Science and Technology, Food and Nutrition Research Institute (DOST-FNRI) has a response to Teacher Erly’s request. Here are two newly-developed materials containing nutritious and affordable recipes intended for various age groups and other special groups:

• The 2020 FNRI Menu Guide Calendar (MGC) with the theme, “Nutritious and Affordable Meals for Healthier Kids” features 12 nutritious meals – nine (9) one dish meals and three (3) combo meals, 4-weekly 7-day cycle menus incorporating the photo-documented recipes and meals as monthly features.

• The Recipe book “Lutong FNRI: Recipes for Supplementary Feeding Program” includes 30 nutritious, simple and affordable developed recipes and turned into 26 meals: 22 are one-dish meals while eight (8) recipes are fused into four (4) combo meals. The meals provide the following information: number and size of serving per age group; estimates of energy and nutrient content per meal; and cost per meal. They also provide one-third of the Recommended Energy Intakes (REI) and Recommended Nutrient Intakes (RNI) for optimum nutrition of children. Another unique feature of this recipe book is the quantification of the recipes, which provide instructions on how to calculate the number of servings to be prepared for a school feeding program. A feeding coordinator can follow the instructions to determine how much food to buy, prepare, and distribute for a specific number of children 3 – 5, 6 – 9 and 10 – 12 years old.

These two innovative materials are great and timely gifts to our feeding coordinators in schools like Teacher Erly and daycare workers in centers in line with the passing of the Republic Act 11037 or Masustansyang Pagkain para sa Batang Pilipino Act. Republic Act 11037 was signed into law in June 20, 2018 by Philippine President Rodrigo Roa Duterte. It institutionalizes a national feeding program for undernourished children in public day care centers, kindergarten and elementary schools to combat hunger and undernutrition among Filipino children and appropriating funds thereof.

Launching of these newly-developed materials and turnover of 250 copies of each material will be on February 19, 2020 at the Makati Diamond Residences, Makati City. Expected guests during the launching and turnover are Honorable Fortunato T. de la Peña, DOST Secretary, Honorable Leonor Magtolis Briones, DepED Secretary, Undersecretary Alain Del B. Pascua, DepEd and Undersecretary Rowena Cristina L. Guevara, DOST.

For more information on food and nutrition, contact: Dr. Mario V. Capanzana, Director, Food and Nutrition Research Institute, Department of Science and Technology, General Santos Avenue, Bicutan, Taguig City; Telephone/ Fax Nos: 8837-2934 or 8837-3164; Direct Line: 8839-1839; DOST Trunk Line: 8837-2071-82 local 2296 or 2284; e-mail: mvc@fnri.dost.gov.ph or at mar_v_c@yahoo.com; DOST-FNRI website: http://www.fnri.dost.gov.ph. Like our Facebook page at facebook.com/FNRI.DOST or follow our Twitter account at twitter.com/FNRI_DOST. (DOST-FNRI S & T Media Service: Press Release – IDELIA G. GLORIOSO, SUPVG. SRS.)

DOST-FNRI unveils strategic plan 2020-2024

The Department of Science and Technology’s Food and Nutrition Research Institute (DOST-FNRI) welcomes the new decade by holding true to its commitment of bringing optimum nutrition for Filipinos. A core team from DOST-FNRI came up with a new set of strategic plans that will guide planning, implementation, monitoring, and evaluation of the Institute’s performance through various programs and projects.

The strategic plan articulates two levels of performance – organizational and program levels. The organizational level presents an integrative perspective of operations as a whole. It is a consolidation of performances of each program under the Institute including cross-cutting concerns, and technical and administrative functions. At the program level, the strategic plan spells-out the program-specific performance targets, key activities and milestones.

The strategic plan is in accordance with the Institute’s vision, mission, mandate and core values of excellence, action-orientedness, teamwork and sincerity. Its strategic direction and goal is to be at the forefront in food and nutrition researches, innovative technologies and transformative information towards a well-nourished nation.

The DOST-FNRI identified strategies, along with four perspectives based on the Balanced Score Card (BSC) including finance, learning and growth, internal processes and stakeholders to execute its mission and achieve its intermediate vision in the next five years.
The strategies are designed to synergize and complement each other to achieve the strategic direction in five years. They are as follows:

Stakeholders
1. Provide strategic solutions to malnutrition reduction across all life stages through food and nutrition research and development (R&D) and science and technological (S&T) services
2. Utilize National Nutrition Survey (NNS) data and basic research as prime drivers to policy actions, interventions and intervention models
3. Maintain active collaboration with partners
Internal Processes
4. Provide accurate and timely nutrition survey results
5. Implement cutting-edge food and nutrition R&D, strengthen the development of innovative technologies, and promote transformative information on food and nutrition
6. Promote and deliver globally-recognized food and nutrition S&T services
Learning and Growth
7. Develop human resources and build a strong R&D and science, technology and innovation (STI) culture
Finance
8. Ensure effective and efficient management of financial resources
9. Secure additional funds from external sources for special R&D and S&T services
In terms of measuring performance, the DOST-FNRI developed its organization-level scorecard that defines the key performance indicators (KPIs) for each strategy. Annual targets are set with the intention to refine these as strategies that will evolve over time. Each of the programs likewise defined their KPIs and targets in the same measurable constructs.
The DOST-FNRI Strategic Plan (2020 – 2024) is one of the initiatives that will be launched on February 19, 2020, during the “2020: Perfect Vision for Nutrition” at the Makati Diamond Residence’s Hotel.

For more information on food and nutrition, contact: Dr. Mario V. Capanzana, Director, Department of Science and Technology – Food and Nutrition Research Institute, General Santos Avenue, Bicutan, Taguig City; Telephone/Fax Nos: 8-837-2934 or 8-837-3164; Direct Line: 8-839-1839; DOST Trunk Line: 8-837-2071 local 2296 or 2284; e-mail: mvc@fnri.dost.gov.ph or at mar_v_c@yahoo.com; DOST-FNRI website: http://www.fnri.dost.gov.ph. Like our Facebook Page at facebook.com/DOST.FNRI or follow our Twitter account at twitter.com/DOST_FNRI. (DOST-FNRI S&T Media Service: Press Release – NICHOLE M. BRISTOL, SRS I)