Malunggay, the miracle vegetable

MANILA, Philippines - When people think “healthy”, they automatically associate the word with a fruit-and-vegetable-rich diet. For vitamin A, they load up on carrots; for vitamin C, they turn to oranges and pineapples; for potassium, they go for bananas. The list goes on. However, a lot of them are missing out on a certain plant that has all of these nutrients, and more.

Malunggay, which grows from the moringa tree (scientific name Moringa oleifera), is the “miracle vegetable” that many scientists are raving about. On its own, malunggay is packed with an unbelievable amount of nutrients seven times the vitamin C found in oranges, four times the vitamin A found in carrots, four times the calcium found in milk, three times the potassium found in bananas, and two times the protein found in yogurt.

Secura Corporation, a local organization led by its president Danny Manayaga, is dedicated to the production of malunggay to solve the various nutritional needs of the country, particularly of children. This is done in partnership with the Department of Health.

According to Manayaga, three out of 10 children have poor nutritional status. “The solution to this would be a change in dietary patterns so that children consume more fortified food. This is a problem that can be answered by one vegetable — malunggay. It has all the nutrients they need to keep healthy and fit,” he states.

He recommends fortifying instant food with this miracle vegetable as the best way of easing malunggay into the Filipino diet. “Instant noodles are a great way to begin incorporating malunggay with everyday food. People love instant noodles, and they eat this all the time because it’s easy to prepare and very tasty. There are already some smaller companies in Baguio and Bicol who have tried something like this, but I feel that we are only touching the tip of the iceberg,” Manayaga explains.

The vegetable can also be used to fortify other food varieties such as pan de sal and, yes, even ice cream.