Beyond being full: The complete nutrition challenge for Filipino children

I've been in the dairy nutrition business since 2001. And yet, there are moments that still stay with me.

I remember visiting a community where a mother told me, "I make sure na busog naman ang anak ko, pero bakit pa rin siya sakitin?" 

I didn't have an easy answer. That stuck with me, especially in my role leading Bear Brand, a children’s milk brand that has long been part of Filipino families’ daily nutrition choices.

This Nutrition Month, let’s talk about a problem that is often invisible but is quietly shaping our children’s health, learning and future.

After nearly 30 years with Nestlé, across different countries and different business challenges, this issue remains one of my most urgent concerns.

The numbers that keep me up

I look at the latest data from the National Nutrition Survey (DOST-FNRI, 2023), and my stomach sinks.

Among children aged 3 to 5, almost 8 in 10 do not get enough iron. About 5 in 10 lack Vitamin A. Nearly 7 in 10 lack calcium, and 6 in 10 are deficient in Vitamin D. 

These are future Grade 1 students who may struggle to keep up in class.

What worries me most is that a child can look well-fed or busog but be malnourished on the inside. We often measure fullness instead of nutrition. And that micronutrient gap can quietly shape how far a child is able to go in life.

It may show up as a child who is always tired, absent, or falling a little behind. 

Too often, we blame the child or the parent. That is not fair.

My own struggle leading a big brand

I lead Bear Brand, a children’s milk brand scientifically formulated with Filipino children's nutritional needs in mind. It is also the No. 1 and most trusted children’s milk brand in the country. That may sound like a point of pride, but honestly, it feels more like a huge responsibility.

Every day, Bear Brand reaches close to 14.5 million fortified glasses of milk—each one part of our continuing effort to help address micronutrient gaps among Filipino children. 

Guided by science, we fortify our products with key micronutrients that help support bones, muscles, the brain, eyes and immunity because children need more than fullness to grow, learn and thrive. 

So I ask myself often: Are we doing enough?

For me, this work comes from the responsibility we carry and from the trust mothers place in us.

Where we're failing—and it's not the parents

Parents are doing their best. They feed their children and work hard, yet many don't realize that being busog isn't the same as providing them with complete nutrition.

Maybe we've made nutrition complicated. Iron, calcium, Vitamin A, Vitamin D, and the Philippine Dietary Reference Intake (PDRI)—these terms don't always reach families in ways they can use.

Then there is the value gap. 

For families, affordability should mean more than the lowest price. It should mean the best possible value: quality nutrition, essential nutrients and meaningful levels of key nutrients that help support a child’s growth and development.

Hope, and what I can promise

Hope comes from mothers asking better questions now: "Kailangan ba ang iron? May sapat na nutrisyon kaya ang anak ko?"

That means the message is getting through—slowly, but surely. It also comes from nutritionists and LGUs who refuse to accept that being busog is enough. They push. They measure. They care about what is unseen.

So here is my personal commitment—as a business leader and as a Filipino:

I promise to keep Bear Brand anchored in science and focused on what Filipino children truly need. I will use my voice to talk about micronutrient deficiency, the need for complete nutrition, the use of nutrition standards such as PDRI, and our campaigns to educate parents—not only as a business leader, but as a Filipino who wants to help address a preventable nutrition problem.

This Nutrition Month, I’m not going to sell you anything. I’m asking you to sit with the same question I carry every day: Are we doing enough and moving fast enough, to protect our children’s health, learning, nutrition and future?

Ask yourself: Is the child I love getting complete nutrition—or just enough to feel full? If you're not sure, that's okay. But don't stop asking.

To leaders in government, business and communities: We can look beyond activity and focus on impact—not only on how many feeding programs we hold, but on whether mothers understand and value nutrition, and whether they have access to the essential nutrients their children need to grow, learn and thrive.

I believe we have both the responsibility and the opportunity to help change the future for Filipino children—by looking beyond whether they are simply full or busog today, and working together to give them the complete nutrition they need for true tibay, brighter possibilities and a stronger tomorrow.

Because a full stomach should never be mistaken for complete nutrition. Every Filipino child deserves that future—not someday, but now.

About the Author: Jojo Dela Cruz is the Business Executive Officer for Dairy at Nestlé Philippines.

Editors Note: This commentary from Nestlé Philippines is not covered by Philstar.com's editorial guidelines.