FOURTEENTH CONGRESS OF THE 
1 
First Regular Session 
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REPUBLIC OF THE PHILIPPINES 
1 7 JIJE 3a p,! -;)/ 
Introduced bv SENATOR EDGARDO J. ANGARA 
EXPLANATORY NOTE 
In 1998, 9.2% of our Filipino children of pre-school age were 
underweight. 7.2% of them were wasted, and 5.4% of them were stunted. In 
the long-term, these children are more susceptible to infection and disease, 
and usually with more serious outcomes due to the effects of malnutrition. 
Consequently too, they absent themselves from school more frequently and 
have lower scholastic performance. 
Malnutrition cuts across all island groupings. Western and Eastern 
Visayas, Southern and Central Mindanao, Bicol and even parts of the NCR 
have prevalence rates of underweight over 13%. In addition, over 30% of all 
children under the age of 5 years suffer from anemia. 
The most' effective means to target childhood malnutrition is through 
the public school network. Unfortunately, although there are current school 
feeding programs administered by the Department of Education, these 
programs rely heavily on allocations from budgets of senators or 
congressmen, or donations from private individuals and corporations. There 
is therefore an urgent need to immediately provide for an institutionalized 
and legislated child nutrition program targeting public elementary schools 
throughout the country. 
Through the Child Nutrition Act, a budgetary allocation shall be made 
to institutionalize a School Feeding Program throughout the public 
elementary school network, incentives shall also be given to private 
companies donating milk, juices, food and the like to the School Feeding 
Program. 
For the abovementioned reasons, the immediate approval of this bill is 
earnestlv sought. 
EDGARDO J. ANGARA 
Senator 


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FOURTEENTH CONGRESS OF THE 
1 
First Regular Session 
1 
7 JUM 30 p(3:,in 
REPUBLIC OF THE PHILIPPINES 
SENATE 
Introduced by SENATOR EDGARDO J. ANGARA 
AN ACT PROVIDING FOR A SCHOOL NUTRITION PROGRAM AND 
FOR OTHER PURPOSES 
Be it enacted by the Senate and the House of Representatioes of the 
Philippines in Congress assembled: 
SECTION 1. Short Title. - This Act shall be known as the “Child 
Nutrition Act of the Philippines.” 
SECTION 2. Purpose. In recognition of 
the demonstrated 
relationship between food and good nutrition and the capacity of children to 
develop and learn, school feeding and other child nutrition programs shall be 
extended, expanded, and strengthened under the authority of the Secretary 
of Agriculture as a measure to safeguard the health and well-being of the 
nation’s children, and to encourage the domestic consumption of agricultural 
and other foods in order to meet more effectively the nutritional needs of our 
children. 
SECTION 3. School Feeding Program. A school nutrition program 
(the “Program”) is hereby established, where the National Nutrition Council 
(‘“NC”), the Department of Education, (“DepED”) and the Department of 
Health (“DOH) shall initiate, maintain and expand a system of distribution 
of milk and fortified snack foods to public elementary school entrants for a 
minimum of one hundred twenty (120) feeding days, five (5) times a week and 
vitamin supplements for a period and in such dosages as may be determined 
by the DOH. The Program shall be administered inside the classroom. The 
Program likewise aims to make school entrants aware of the importance of 
good nutrition by providing relevant and user-friendly nutrition information 
and education materials. Provided, that the Program shall begin within the 
first two weeks of the school year. 
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For purposes of this act, a school entrant is defined as a student 
enrolled in the first grade. 
SECTION 4. Objectives of the Program. The Program shall: 
(1) Provide fresh milk to public elementary schools through the 
cooperation of local cooperatives and dairy corporations; 
(2) Provide vitamin supplements in such dosages and for such a 
duration as the DOH may determine most beneficial to the child's 
health and nutritional well-being; 
(3) Target all public school entrants regardless of their nutritional 
status; 
(4) Each school entrant will receive milk and fortified snacks, based on 
a menu determined by the NNC in conjunction with the 
Department of Science and Technology to consist of a combination 
of foods meeting the minimum nutritional requirements on the 
basis of tested nutritional research, except that the minimum 
nutritional requirements shall be measured by not less than the 
weekly average of the nutrient content of the meals; 
(5) Beneficiaries shall eat their snack inside the classroom during 
recess time and shall not be allowed to bring home his ration; 
Provided, that if a school child was absent, the school feeding 
coordinator in the school shall insure that his share for that day 
shall be added to his share the next feeding day when he reports 
back to class; Provided, further, that only twice the usual serving 
portion shall be allowed to an absentee school child; Provided, 
finally, that in case of prolonged absence, both the milk and/or 
snack food shall be given on a staggered basis, doubling his share 
every feeding day until the school child catches up with the others; 
(6) Beneficiaries shall take their vitamin supplements inside the 
classroom simultaneously with the fortified snack. 
SECTION 5. Incentives to Private Companies. Local dairy 
cooperatives, private agricultural companies and other companies donating 
food, milk, juices, vitamin supplements or other similar products (the 
"Product"), are' hereby allowed to deduct from its gross income earned two 
hundred percent (200%) of the value of the Product, provided that: 
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(1) the donation is duly approved by the Secretary of Education upon 
recommendation of the Director of the NNC, in case of food 
products, and the Secretary of Health, in case of vitamin products; 
and 
(2) the deduction shall not exceed twenty percent (20%) of gross income 
earned. 
SECTION 6. Social Mobilization and Preparation. Orientation- 
training shall be held among DepED health and nutrition unit personnel at 
the regional and division levels, in order to orient them on the Program’s 
objectives and mechanics and generate support to the Program. 
An orientation-workshop shall be conducted at the district and school 
levels for district and school level heads. The output shall be the school plan 
of action containing the roles and responsibilities of the concerned school 
personnel. 
Training and orientation shall be conducted by the DepED core of 
trainors, with personnel trained at the schools division level being 
responsible for training staff at the district and municipal level; and those 
trained at the municipal level training the implementers and feeding 
coordinators at the school level. 
The feeding coordinator shall conduct the briefing among parents and 
children, including determining the baseline knowledge of the children and 
their parents on nutrition through a pre-test and delineating the roles among 
parents during the duration of the feeding. 
Feeding paraphernalia consisting of placemats, napkin, spoon and 
fork, small bowl, saucer, mugs and drinking glass should be brought by the 
pupils. 
SECTION 7. Simultaneous Examination. A simultaneous health 
and dental examination and deworming of the participating children shall be 
done during the meeting-orientation of parents. These shall be conducted by 
the division/district medical staff and nurses or the Rural Health Unit in the 
community. Pupils found with defectdailments shall be given proper 
treatment or referred to hospitals. Classroom advisers shall note 
observations regarding the pupils’ health condition. Height and weight of 
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pupils shall be taken before the Program and every month after the start 
thereof. 
SECTION 8. Procurement, Storage and Handling of Food Items 
and Vitamin Supplements. Procurement of the fortified snack foods shall 
be done by DepED in coordination with the NNC, and in cases where rice or 
sugar will be distributed, in coordination with the National Food Authority 
(NFA), while that of fresh milk shall be procured by the National Dairy 
Authority (NDA). Vitamin supplements shall be procured by the DOH. 
All public elementary schools shall submit to DepED the number of 
school entrants expected by April 15 of each year. The list shall be 
consolidated by DepED and used as a basis for procuring fortified snack 
foods. DepED shall insure the food commodities arrive on time to the schools 
through the district schools, which shall be the designated pick-up point. 
Public elementary schools shall pick up the commodities after the fifth day of 
each month even without notice from the district school. 
DepED shall furnish the DOH with the number of school entrants per 
district by April 30 of each year. The list shall be used by the DOH as a basis 
for procuring vitamin supplements. DOH shall insure delivery to the district 
school of vitamin supplements needed for that district within the first five (5) 
days of each month. 
For the fresh milk, DepED shall furnish the NDA with the number of 
children per school located in the twelve (12) key dairy development areas of 
the country, with local dairy cooperatives delivering fresh milk daily to 
schools to insure freshness and safety. The NDA shall make payment upon 
the local dairy cooperative upon submission of a certification issued by the 
public elementary school stating that fresh milk was received in good 
condition. The fresh milk should be individually packed in sealed plastic, 
provided with straw and properly packed in ice to avoid spoilage during 
transport, Provided, that the local dairy cooperative shall be responsible to 
insure the safety of the fresh milk before it reaches the school. 
SECTION 9. Role of the Secretary of Agriculture. The Secretary of 
Agriculture shall provide technical assistance and training, including 
technical assistance and training in the preparation of foods high in complex 
carbohydrates and lower-fat versions of foods commonly used.in the Program, 
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to schools participating in the Program to assist the schools in complying 
with the nutritional requirements prescribed by the NNC in coordination 
with the DOST and in providing appropriate meals to children with medically 
certified special dietary needs. 
SECTION 10. Use in Program of food in abundance or donated. 
Each school participating under the Program shall, insofar as practicable, 
utilize in its Program foods designated from time to time by the Secretary of 
Agriculture as being in abundance, either nationally or in the school area, or 
foods donated by private entities with the consent of the DepED and NNC. 
Provided, that smuggled agricultural products which have been seized by the 
proper authorities and which are certified by the DOH as fit for consumption 
may be donated by the proper authorities for this Program. 
SECTION 11. Local Government Participation. Local Government 
Units where school districts are located shall provide a counterpart fund of at 
least twenty percent (20%) of the cost incurred for Programs implemented 
within their jurisdiction. 
SECTION 12. Priority Areas. In case of shortage of funds, the 
implementation of the Program shall first be undertaken in provinces where 
malnutrition rates are most severe, as may be determined by the NNC. 
SECTION 13. Rules and Regulations. The DepED, NNC and DOST 
shall draw the implementing rules and regulations of this Act within thirty 
(30) days from the effectivity of this Act. 
SECTION 14. Appropriations. An initial sum of One Hundred 
Million Pesos (PlOO,OOO,OOO.OO) is hereby appropriated for the first year of 
implementation of the Program. Thereafter, all appropriations shall be taken 
from the annual appropriations of the NNC. Provided, that all administrative 
expenses of the Program shall be taken from the DepED annual 
appropriations. 
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Approved, 
SECTION 15. Effectivity. This law shall take effect within fifteen 
(15) days from publication in a newspaper of general circulation.