JULY 5, 2012 DATE

NR # 2791
REF. NO.

Lawmakers laud Coca-Cola Philippines for its corporate social responsibility

Several legislators coming from the minority block want to bestow to Coca-Cola Philippines a Congressional Appreciation Award for its outstanding program of alleviating anemia through its Nutrijuice feeding program. In House Resolution 2458, the authors led by Minority Leader Danilo Suarez (3rd District, Quezon) said Coca Cola Philippines specifically formulated Nutrijuice to help combat Iron Deficiency Anemia (IDA), which is one of the most prevalent micronutrient deficiencies in the country. Suarez said Coca-Cola Company and the Food and Nutrition Research Institute of the Department of Science and Technology (FNRI-DOST) developed an orange-flavored drink called Nutrijuice fortified with iron, zinc, lysine and vitamins A and C, and which has been scientifically proven to help reduce IDA. The company has achieved and contributed much to improving the nutritional and iron status of school children since year 2006. Coca Cola has aided in alleviating the prevalence of anemia from 100 percent to 13.0 percent through the fortified juice, Suarez said. According to the 2003 National Nutrition Survey by the Food and Nutrition Research Institute of the Department of Science and Technology (FNRIDOST), 37.4% of children aged 6-12 years old in the Philippines are iron deficient, with the main causes including poverty, insufficient dietary intake and poor availability of iron-rich foods, among others. Coca-Cola aims not only to become an employer or a beverage company, but also a responsible member of the community. It has given the supplementary feeding program to almost 200,000 children aged 6-12 years old since it conducted an efficacy study in 2006 among 300 children at the Pinaglabanan Elementary School in San Juan, Metro Manila, Suarez said. Suarez said the study showed that a multi-micronutrient fortified juice is effective in increasing the hemoglobin levels among iron-depleted children. NutriJuice had significantly reduced anemia among iron-depleted children. Iron stores of all children supplemented with the fortified juice were higher than those who had non-fortified juice and the fortified juice had significantly increased the weight and height of both the anemic and underweight children. Rep. Lani Mercado-Revilla (2nd District, Cavite), a co-author of the resolution, said

JULY 5, 2012 DATE

NR # 2791
REF. NO.

Iron Deficiency Anemia, or IDA, can reduce a childs learning ability and hamper their mental and physical development. Revilla said one of the ways to solve this problem is by adding vitamins and/or minerals to food to increase its overall nutritional content. Fortifying commonly consumed foods and beverages with iron is a simple but effective way for young children to get adequate amounts of iron in their diet. Beverages are a good choice as they are easy to administer and consistent in quality. Beverages like Nutrijuice are also less likely to obstruct the body from absorbing the nutrients, MercadoRevilla said. Mercado-Revilla said Coca-Cola should be commended for their outstanding contribution to the countrys youth for this particular activity. Since its inception in 2006, Coca-Colas feeding program has benefited 6,800 children in Quirino province, Quezon City, San Juan and Metro Manila. More regions across the Philippines have also benefited from the program which includes Zambales, Palawan, Tacloban, Davao, Bukidnon, Taguig, Pasig and Marikina. Co-authors of the resolution are Reps. Ma. Amelita Calimbas-Villarosa (Lone District, Occidental Mindoro), Maria Milagros Magsaysay (1st District, Zambales) and Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo (2nd District, Pampanga). (30) lvc