TheJakartaPost
Please Update your browser
Your browser is out of date, and may not be compatible with our website. A list of the most popular web browsers can be found below.
Just click on the icons to get to the download page.
Nestlé Indonesia continuous fight against stunting through nutrition education
Change text size
Gift Premium Articles
to Anyone
Share the best of The Jakarta Post with friends, family, or colleagues. As a subscriber, you can gift 3 to 5 articles each month that anyone can read—no subscription needed!
The Healthy Kitchen to Overcome Stunting (DASHAT) program by PT Nestlé Indonesia, together with the National Population and Family Planning Agency (BKKBN), provided nutritious food and fortified milk three times a week for 85 toddlers in Karawang Regency from October to December 2022. The program helped 23 percent of children with severe stunting in Gintungkerta and Karawang Kulon villages.
T
he reduction of stunting in toddlers is a priority for Indonesia as the problem becomes increasingly prominent in society. The national target in 2024 is to reduce the prevalence of stunting by 14 percent.
On the other hand, many Indonesian children also suffer from obesity due to the consumption of foods which lack nutritional value. The key to solving both of these problems is through education.
Since its presence in Indonesia in 1971, PT Nestlé Indonesia bring a strong purpose to unlock the power of food to enhance quality of life for everyone, today and for generations to come.
In line with this ambition, and continuing the legacy of Nestlé's founders, all products it releases into the market have gone through a series of research processes which ensure excellence for consumers. This starts from the process of selecting raw materials, continuing through the production process all the way to packaging.
One of the main stages in Nestlé’s product development is the application of the Nestlé Nutritional Profiling System which ensures good nutritional value in the products produced.
"Nestlé is committed to providing delicious and healthy product choices to the public. In addition to the Nestlé Nutritional Profiling System, we also fortify several products. In 2023, we managed to serve 3.3 billion products fortified with Iron, Zinc, Iodine, Vitamin A and Vitamin D. Fortification, or the addition of micronutrients, is important because it can help meet adequate nutritional standards," said Sufintri Rahayu, director of corporate affairs and sustainability at Nestlé Indonesia.
However, Nestlé knows that putting nutritious products in the market is not enough on its own. This is why Nestlé Indonesia also offers initiatives and programs to educate people about the importance of nutrition.
Globally, the Nestlé Supports Healthier Kids initiative promotes balanced diets and healthy lifestyle habits for children aged 3–12 years and supports parents and caregivers to raise healthier kids.
“Nutrition is one of the most important components for children's growth and development, especially during the first 1,000 days of life. In Indonesia, nutritional problems due to an imbalance in energy and nutrient intake can cause various problems including being either underweight or obese, and stunting,” said Ali Khomsan, professor of food and nutrition at the Bogor Agricultural University (IPB).
“Efforts to improve children's nutritional status involves multi-sector cooperation, from the government to the private sector, media and universities. This multi-faceted approach is expected to accelerate the eradication of nutritional problems in Indonesia,” he added.
In October 2022, in partnership with the National Population and Family Planning Agency (BKKBN), Nestlé launched the Healthy Kitchen to Overcome Stunting (DASHAT) program as part of an effort to reduce stunting in the community in Karawang Regency.
This program provided nutritious food and fortified milk three times a week for 85 toddlers from October to December 2022. As a result, the program succeeded in significantly reducing severe stunting by 23 percent in Gintungkerta and Karawang Kulon villages.
Through the 100 Days of Nutrition Assistance program, the company has collaborated with the regional government and the Family Empowerment and Welfare Movement Team (TP PKK), along with Ali and the IPB team, representing community institutions and academics.
From August 2023 to March 2024, the program has carried out the provision of one glass of fortified milk and one egg every day for 100 days for stunted children aged 12 to 60 months. The 100 Days of Nutrition Assistance program has already reached more than 600 children in eight provinces.
In addition to external initiatives to support the government in reducing the national stunting rate, Nestlé Indonesia also actively promotes a healthy breakfast campaign for Indonesian children. This campaign is carried out in various forms, such as the donation of breakfast products, publication of social media content to educate the public and the creation of a site for the public to write messges to Indonesian children encouraging the consumption of a healthy breakfst.
Furthermore, Nestlé Indonesia has various internal programs for its employees for implementing a healthy lifestyle. These range from the formation of sports clubs to the implementation of training programs such as “Health Starts from You” and “Nutrition Quotient”, which ensure that every employee has sufficient nutritional knowledge and practices a healthy lifestyle.
"We strive to continuously participate in helping the government educate the public about the importance of quality nutrition. For that reason, we will continue to innovate while expanding access to nutritious and quality products." concluded Sufintri.
Source : Nestle
