Ajinomoto and Municipality of Cainta partner to fight malnutrition with Mag-Pinggang Pinoy® Tayo! Program

The Ajinomoto Philippines Corporation (APC) Group and the Municipality of Cainta held a hybrid ceremonial contract signing event last December 3, 2021 to mark their commitment to strengthen the Mag-Pinggang Pinoy® Tayo! (MPPT) program in a bid to address malnutrition in the country. The event was held in Banquet Hall East, Filinvest East, Cainta and broadcasted in a virtual meeting.

MPPT, a program launched by APC Group in 2018, aims to promote the practice of Pinggang Pinoy®, an easy-to-understand healthy food plate guide for Filipinos developed by the Department of Science and Technology – Food and Nutrition Research Institute.

“This program embodies our Nutrition Commitment towards extending the healthy life expectancy of Filipinos. We also recognize the importance of our collaboration with the local government unit of Cainta. Together, we will create an ecosystem that would make the MPPT program effective and sustainable,” said APC Group President Tsutomu Nara during the event.

The Ajinomoto Group’s Nutrition Commitment is to help extend the healthy life expectancy of 1 billion people by 2030 utilizing its expertise in Amino Science. This allows the company to support delicious salt reduction using umami, provide products to contribute to people's wellness and provide health and nutrition improvement information as well as easy recipes/menus.

Joining APC President Nara in representing the company is Mr. Hironori Aoki, Director, Marketing, Sales and Public Relations. Meanwhile, the Municipality of Cainta was represented by Hon. Mayor Johnielle Keith “Kit” Nieto and its Municipal Health Officer Dr. Edgardo Gonzaga. Also in attendance were representatives of MPPT partners and supporters: UPLB-MPPT Project Team led by Dr. Angelina DR. Felix of the Institute of Human Nutrition and Food- College of Human Ecology, UPLB; Dr. Pauline Jean Rossel-Ubial, former Secretary of Health; and Ms. Sarah Coe, Redscope Communications CEO.

“Thank you Ajinomoto for this opportunity, for having decided to give back, and for your willingness and your generosity in providing us everything we need. There is actually a lot more to do for us just to make sure that the people are always healthy.” said Hon. Mayor Johnielle Keith “Kit” Nieto in his address to the company and all the people that make MPPT possible.

The APC Group, Cainta, and its MPPT advocates are determined to combat malnutrition especially amid the ongoing pandemic where food systems have been disrupted and have continued to affect vulnerable groups like children. In line with this, the drafted MPPT program in Cainta consists of the following: (1) online capacity building of community health workers, (2) online nutrition education of homemakers, and (3) one-meal dietary supplementation among identified undernourished children for 120 days.

“This is truly one of the most important projects of the APC Group,” said Hironori Aoki, APC Group Director of Marketing, Sales and Public Relations. “Ajinomoto is not only a food company but a solution providing company guided by the Ajinomoto Group Creating Shared Value (ASV) with a mission to help resolve emerging social issues such as malnutrition through thoughtful initiatives.”

For more information about the MPPT program, visit ajinomoto.com.ph today.

Healthy Diet Safeguards Against COVID-19.

The COVID-19 pandemic intensifies the Philippines' battle against 'Double Burden of Malnutrition'. This is defined by the World Health Organization (WHO) as 'the coexistence of undernutrition along with overweight and obesity, or diet-related non-communicable diseases, within individuals, households and populations, and across the life course.'

The limited distribution and access to food supplies aggravate the plight of poor and low income households to sustain each person's required nutrients through healthy meals. On the other hand, home confinement due to the mandated community quarantine may cause more people to not only restrict their physical activities but also to overeat and/or consume more food with empty calories as part of coping with stress and/or boredom.

Given the importance of maintaining healthy diets to sustain our health and immunity against viruses and bacteria, we should turn to the practice of Pinggang Pinoy® as a viable safeguard to protect our family from diseases.

Mag-Pinggang Pinoy® Tayo!

Ajinomoto Philippines Corporation (APC) introduced 'Mag-Pinggang Pinoy® Tayo 7-Day Menu Challenge' as a way to encourage homemakers to serve a variety of balanced meals to their families. Homemakers could access the Mag-Pinggang Pinoy® Tayo 7-Day menu plan at www.ajinomoto.com.ph and facebook.com/CookmunitybyAjinomotoPH. This is part of the company's 'Eat Well, Live Well, Stay Well' campaign to provide Filipino families with practical tips on proper nutrition,  recipe menu and fitness activities to cope, stay well, and enjoy life despite the current COVID-19 situation.

Ajinomoto's 7-day menu plan is composed of complete meals for breakfast, lunch, and dinner. Each meal provides recipe suggestions for healthy and delicious Pinggang Pinoy® recipes that are easy to prepare and affordable, too. These recipes are simple yet healthy solutions to serve enjoyable Pinggang Pinoy® meals. Homemakers could make use of their extra time to purchase widely available and inexpensive fruits and vegetables to complement rice beyond the usual supply of canned goods. Ajinomoto's recipes make common ingredients more palatable like Tofu Sisig, Meaty Pechay Picadillo, Pork Tapa and Tomatoes, Ensaladang Talbos ng Kamote, Sweet and Sour Galunggong, and many more. Here are three recipe samplers done in three easy steps:

Pork Tapa with Tomatoes.

Pork Tapa with Tomatoes

1. Marinate pork in water, sugar, soy sauce, pepper and SARSAYA® Oyster Sauce overnight. 

2. Saute onion, garlic, and pork.

3. Pour the marinate mixture and boil until the mixture is thick.

Sweet and Sour Fish.

Sweet and Sour Galunggong
1. In a pan, fry the galunggong. Set aside. In the same pan, saute bell pepper and carrots.
2. Add soy sauce and water and cornstarch slurry. Season with salt, ground pepper, and AJI-GINISA® . Let it boil until sauce thickens.
3. Add the fried galunggong to the SARSAYA® Sweet and Sour Sauce.

Meaty Pechay Picadillo.

Meaty Pechay Picadillo
1. Saute onion, garlic, and ground pork, and mix in carrots, green peas, and pechay.
2. Season with pepper, soy sauce, and AJI-GINISA® Flavor Seasoning Mix.
3. Cook for one minute more.

For full recipes and for more information about Ajinomoto and its products, visit www.ajinomoto.com.ph and facebook.com/CookmunitybyAjinomotoPH.

Eat Well, Live Well with Pinggang Pinoy® + Free Recipes!

The country has been facing the rise on the number of underweight and overweight Filipinos for more than 20 years. The World Health Organization (WHO) defined this phenomenon as the “Double Burden of Malnutrition” or the “prevalence of both undernutrition and overweight in the same community, nation, or region.”

To address this problem, our government launched the Pinggang Pinoy® campaign in 2014. Pinggang Pinoy® is an easy-to-understand food guide showing proper food group portioning on a per-meal basis. This reflects the principles of MOderation, VAriety and BAlance (MOVABA) to promote healthier eating habits.

Practicing Pinggang Pinoy.

Solving the Philippines’ Double Burden of Malnutrition should be a collaborative effort between the public and private sectors as it is not an easy feat. With this, Ajinomoto Philippines Corporation partnered with government agencies to conduct education programs to raise awareness and promote the practice of Pinggang Pinoy® in malnutrition hotspots, where incidences of Double Burden Malnutrition are high. This training was given to homemakers/mothers who have malnourished (underweight, stunting, wasting, overweight and obese) school-aged children.

The pilot run resulted to improvements of the knowledge & attitudes of households related to the practice of Pinggang Pinoy® within target areas. However, behavior changes towards healthier eating habits remains to be a challenge. The program uncovered a number #MalnutritionTraps that some Pinoy households easily fall into. The following #MalnutritionTraps provide a picture of how unhealthy eating habits may lead to Double Burden of Malnutrition:

1. Overconsumption of carbohydrates
Voracious rice eaters can easily fill half of their plates with rice. Others have pandesal & noodles as regular meal deprived of other nutrients derived from a well-balanced meal.

2. Under consumption of vegetables and/fruits
It is common for some to be content with rice & meat to satisfy their hunger and skip/take insufficient amount of vegetables/fruits. Fact is, the variety of colors found in Glow foods are important sources of vitamins & minerals to sustain our energy & keep us from getting sick.

3. Overconsumption of protein
Typical Filipino “SILOG” meals include double serving of proteins (e.g. Tapa+Itlog, Tocino+Itlog, Longanisa+Itlog, Bangus+Itlog). Eating different kinds of protein is fine for as long as they are taken in moderation. We must also avoid protein dishes served high in fat, cholesterol and sodium.

Mag-Pinggang Pinoy tayo!

As a kid, I used to eat lots of high-carb food, especially for breakfast. My grandmother, who took care of us when we were kids, was also a working as a public school teacher back then and had little time to prepare a 'balanced breakfast' for my siblings and I. Rice and noodles, pan de sal with cheese, white bread with margarine - these were our typical morning meals before we all make a mad dash for school. So it's not surprising that my sibs and I were on the heavy side for the most part of our childhood and teenage life.

Not wanting to make this same mistake with my son, I adopted the Pinggang Pinoy® concept in preparing meals for my family. You too, can break free from these #MalnutritionTraps with the help of these Healthy & Delicious Pinggang Pinoy® Recipes, carefully selected and prepared by Ajinomoto’s Culinary Nutrition Team. Busy and budget-restricted homemakers will also find these Pinggang Pinoy® recipes useful because all are easy-to-do and affordable (P250/day for family of 5). You can download the recipes here.

Download now for free!

For updates about Mag-Pinggang Pinoy® Tayo!, visit www.ajinomoto.com.ph and www.facebook.com/CookmunitybyAjinomotoPH.