Pinoys take the GROW challenge

MANILA, Philippines - Actress Cherry Pie Picache plans her meals and buys only what she needs, mindful not to waste food. This is one of the calls of international non-profit Oxfam’s Grow Challenge, a campaign for Filipinos to commit to five simple actions that have dramatic positive benefits for our agriculture, food producers and the environment.

The Grow Challenge is an online-based campaign which enjoins consumers to make the following five positive food choices through hashtags: #EatBrownRice, #BuyLocal, #ReduceFoodWaste, #SaveWater, and #ConserveEnergy.

The Grow challenge is part of Oxfam’s Grow campaign calling for a radically new approach to the way we grow, share and manage food and other natural resources. According to Oxfam’s research, in the Philippines, the challenge is close to 100 million Filipinos – growing by two million per year – on increasingly degraded and shrinking agricultural lands. About 50 percent of Filipinos spend 56 percent of income on food – the poorer the Filipino household, the higher percentage of its income it allocates to food.  Rice yield will fall by 10 percent for each 1 degree C increase in temperature.  All regions of the Philippines are considered vulnerable to climate change impacts. 

Oxfam calls for increased investments in smallholder farmers and fishers; better government policies that will bring improved livelihoods of food producers and spur economic production and growth; and increasing the resiliency of vulnerable sectors towards impacts of climate change. But individuals, especially young people, can do their share in fixing the food system through the Grow Challenge.

The ongoing online campaign encourages netizens to take photos and post commitments on social networking sites like Facebook, Twitter and Instagram, inspiring others in the process.

Boosting the online campaign’s popularity in the social media, Oxfam ambassadors like Picache led the #GrowChallenge. Together with Picache, GMA-7 actor Mikael Daez campaigned for #EatBrownRice, comedienne Tuesday Vargas pitched for #SaveWater, chef Stephanie Zubiri encouraged everyone to #BuyLocal and food blogger and restaurateur Erwan Heussaff called for #ConserveEnergy.   

At the peak of the campaign last July, hundreds of people posted their own commitments on their social media accounts using hashtag-calls of the #GROWChallenge. Public support grew after the #GrowChallenge was launched in Trinoma, in Quezon City.

Dubbed as the “#GROWChallenge Launch: GROW, Share and Live Better,” the Oxfam event witnessed thousands of mall-goers, students, and mothers listen to the testimonials of the five Oxfam ambassadors and gamely participated in games. They also checked out booths of other non-governmental organizations to learn more about each of the challenges.

At the event, Zubiri shared that since she started as an Oxfam ambassador two years ago, she became more conscious of the ingredients she uses when she cooks. “Buying locally grown produce supports livelihoods and travels shorter distances,” she said.  

Kapuso Actor Mikael Daez is fully behind #eatbrownrice because he believes it will help fulfill the country’s rice requirements. Since brown rice is rice milled once compared to white rice which is milled twice, it is heavier and packed with more nutrients. In the Philippines, the milling of brown rice has less wastage – yielding 70 percent compared to white rice which is 63 percent – and greater production would mean increased tonnage of locally available rice. 

Erwan Heussaff shared his thoughts about conserving energy by relating it to the situation in Mindanao. “In a country where a power crisis is regularly experienced especially in Mindanao and has electricity rates that are high, every Filipino must think of ways on how to be energy efficient at home.”  

For Tuesday Vargas, “Filipinos should save water because not everyone has access to safe and potable water. In our home, I am conscious of water leaks to reduce the amount of water being lost.”

“The success of Oxfam’s #GROWChallenge proves that more and more Filipinos are realizing that we need to take simple yet concrete actions so that resources such as land, water, and energy will still be available and enjoyed by future generations,” said Marie Madamba-Nuñez, head of Oxfam’s advocacy, campaigns and communications program.  “We are grateful for the role of our ambassadors in getting the public to take the Grow challenge,” said Nuñez.

In connection with International Rural Women’s Day Celebration last Oct. 15 and World Food Day on Oct. 16, Oxfam and its celebrity ambassadors toured schools and campuses, speaking to bloggers and social media influencers and granting media briefings and interviews to hype up the Grow Challenge. World Food Day is a global celebration declared by the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO). This year’s theme focuses on “Sustainable Food System for Food Security and Nutrition.”   

Follow Oxfam sa Pilipinas on Facebook and Instagram to receive updates on the GROW campaign.