World Vision, Westmont unite in promoting good nutrition among Filipino children

MANILA, Philippines - World Vision and Westmont Pharmaceuticals, through its Appebon Kid vitamins brand, successfully completed their joint nationwide campaign “Happetite School Caravan,” which covered 10 cities and 200 schools nationwide.

The caravan that started in August and ended in November last year covered selected areas in Metro Manila, Pampanga, Batangas, Baguio, Bicol, Bacolod, Iloilo, Cebu, Cagayan de Oro and Davao.

“We are glad that we found a partner in Westmont Pharmaceuticals in our continuing drive to support government’s effort to reduce malnutrition among children in the Philippines. We are able increase the scope of our campaign and reach more families with the help of our partners,” said Magdalena Laxamana, program officer of World Vision.

Malnutrition, one of the leading causes of death among children under five years old, is one of the key advocacies of World Vision, which reports that each year 8.8 million children under five years old die from several illnesses and half of these deaths are caused by malnutrition.

“We thank World Vision for giving us the opportunity to be part of their worthy project, which is in line with our own advocacy. We also thank all the schools that participated in our caravan. Appebon Kid is happy to give back to the community,” said Jenny Bulao, marketing director of Westmont Pharmaceuticals, a subsidiary of United Laboratories Inc. (Unilab).

Malnutrition is a condition when the body does not get the right amount of nutrients, minerals and vitamins that it needs to remain healthy.  Appebon Kid is a vitamin supplement that helps enhance children’s appetite. Its vision as a brand is to give Filipino children the gift of good health through proper nutrition.

Based on the latest National Nutrition Survey of the Food and Nutrition Research Institute (FNRI), which provides information on the health status of Filipinos, “Among children zero to 10 years old, under-nutrition continues to be a public health problem, affecting nearly three out of 10 children. The percentage of underweight children in the country increased from 22.8 percent in 2005 to 25.6 percent in 2008. This may be due to the significant reduction in the total food intake of children six months to five years old, from 2003 to 2008.”  

The joint project of World Vision and Westmont recently culminated in a Children’s Fellowship Program with food packs distribution in Malabon City, one of the largest supported communities of World Vision.

Schoolchildren from various sitios of Malabon participated in fun-filled activities throughout the day, capped by the distribution of giveaways from Appebon Kid and food packs for their families. Westmont raised cash which was converted into food packs that were distributed to families in Malabon.

 A total of 200 schools participated in the drive to raise enough money to provide meals and snack packs to World Vision-supported families in Malabon. The “Happetite School Caravan” team collected empty boxes of Appebon Kid syrup and Westmont donated two pesos to World Vision for every box collected.