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A country built by NutriJuice

07/05/2009

Everyday a Struggle

School was bad today. It didn’t rain but the five kilometers that Julio walked to get there was still something to contend with. English was another story altogether. Try as he might, he just could not drown out the sound of his hungry stomach with his teacher’s lesson on verbs. Recess time involved nothing more than a small piece of bread, albeit lovingly packed for him by his mother. How was he going to get through mathematics later? What are multiplication tables to an empty stomach?

This story may seem dramatic but it is definitely real. This is the daily plight of millions of Julios all over the Philippines. The causes are many, poverty for one. But the result is always the same: poor nutrition equates to poor physical and mental growth of children, the future leaders of the country.

The Creation of NutriJuice

It is from this dilemma that one solution was born. Coca-Cola Philippines collaborated with the Food and Nutrition Research Institute of the Department of Science and Technology (FNRI-DoST) to create NutriJuice. It is an orange juice drink fortified with iron, zinc, lysine and vitamins A and C to help combat the prevalence of iron deficiency anemia (IDA).

According to the 2003 National Nutrition Survey of the FNRI-DoST, 37.4 percent of children aged 6-12 years old are afflicted with IDA. This results from lack of iron in the body and leads to poor physical and mental development, the manifestations of which are sluggishness, lack of attention and energy. With NutriJuice, Coca-Cola aims to assist in bringing life and energy to Filipino schoolchildren by providing them mineral and vitamin supplements which help fulfill their needs for iron and growth.

The power of the juice

Armed with a product that could potentially create a positive difference for children, Coca-Cola and FNRI-DoST sought to test the efficacy of NutriJuice in 2006.

Some 277 pupils in Pinaglabanan Elementary School, San Juan, Metro Manila, were given NutriJuice for 100 feeding days. The results were just a little short of astounding. From 100 percent anemia levels at the beginning of the study, it was reduced to 13 percent at the end. Furthermore, the height and weight of the students also significantly improved during the course of the study.

With the efficacy test in tow, Coca-Cola sought to spread the juice to Filipino schoolchildren. In 2008 NutriJuice was launched to benefit 5,000 schoolchildren in the Northern province of Quirino. In the 1998 NNS when there was a provincial estimate for IDA, Quirino was identified as having one of the highest rates of IDA prevalence among children aged six months to less than five years old, which is concomitantly true to schoolchildren. Thus, Coca-Cola and FNRI-DoST conducted a 120-day feeding program involving 19 elementary schools.

On the forefront of hunger

The unfortunate reality is that children in remote areas have a difficult time mustering the energy needed to perform in school. There are sad stories and then there are really sad stories in Quirino. What’s important to note in this instance is that a few months into the implementation of the project, attendance is up and teachers are appreciative of the newfound eagerness in students.

NutriJuice was also distributed to 1,500 schoolchildren in Bagong Silangan Elementary School in Quezon City. Though within a prosperous city, most students of Bagong Silangan cope with similar, if not the same conditions as those in Quirino. Hunger, inattention, inactivity. NutriJuice’s introduction into their lives brought smiles to their faces, as noted by their teachers and school principal.
More juice, more children

The cases of Quirino and Bagong Silangan show that more children all over the country are in need of vital micronutrients to reach their full potential. With this overwhelming mission, Coca-Cola is doing all that it can to bring these much-needed growth promoters to them.

Starting July 2009, Coca-Cola will be bringing NutriJuice to 30,000 students nationwide for 120 feeding days. It will be at the mountains of Bukidnon, the islands of Palawan and Tacloban, and the inner city areas of Marikina and Taguig.

The Coca-Cola Foundation accepts donations for the project and is looking for partners willing to bring this dream to life. You may call the foundation through 0917-837-5269 or 866-2582.