A proposed national nutrition initiative seeking to ensure access to sufficient and safe food for public school students is being pushed in the House of Representatives, aiming to address hunger and improve academic performance among Filipino learners.
House Bill 5681, authored by Representative Patrick Michael Vargas of Quezon City’s 5th District, seeks to expand and amend Republic Act 11037 or the Masustansyang Pagkain para sa Batang Pilipino Act by instituting a universal feeding program for public school students from Kindergarten to Grade 3, regardless of nutritional status.
The proposed National Nutrition Program is designed to guarantee that all young learners in public schools receive daily meals to combat hunger and malnutrition, which lawmakers say directly affect classroom performance and learning capacity.
Under the measure, feeding interventions would be standardized nationwide to ensure consistent nutritional support for early-grade students during school days.
Data cited in the proposal indicates that around 12 percent of Filipino students experience hunger either daily or every other day due to lack of food at home, a condition linked to lower academic performance and reduced classroom participation.
The bill highlights that malnutrition weakens students’ ability to absorb lessons and may contribute to learning delays, reinforcing the need for stronger school-based nutrition programs ahead of the 2026–2027 school year.
Lawmakers supporting the measure emphasized that addressing child hunger is a critical step toward improving educational outcomes and reducing inequality in access to quality learning.
