Youth Engagement in Transforming the Food System to Address Malnutrition in the Philippines

Transforming the Philippine food system is essential to achieving AmBisyon Natin 2040 and addressing persistent malnutrition. This paper focuses on youth engagement as a pathway to reform by exploring how to inspire interest in agriculture, improve dietary quality, and integrate nutrition into policy. Despite education reforms, agriculture remains undervalued in the school curriculum, often viewed as vocational rather than scientific. Negative perceptions, limited resources, and weak teacher training hinder student interest and career uptake.

Stunting among preschoolers remains high, especially among low-income households, due to poor maternal diets and limited access to nutrient-rich foods. Addressing this requires long-term strategies to raise agricultural productivity and incomes, and short-term solutions like biofortification and lowering the cost of nonstaple nutritious foods. Youth can be catalysts for food system transformation by shaping food choices, participating in agripreneurship, and leading innovation. Strategic policy reforms, improved education, and targeted investments are needed to build a resilient, nutrition-sensitive food system.