Program helped children from marginalized community in Rajahmundry with improve health
New Delhi, 12th August, 2016: Boye Chinnababu is in Grade 6 at Mandal Upper primary school, Mukundavaram Rajahmundry. He is the son of a daily wage farmer. There are days when his father does not find any work, as a result the family goes to bed hungry. Boye’s motivation to go to school every day is a glass of milk, an egg and a packet of biscuit which takes care of his daily nutritional requirements. Boye is amongst the 216 children who are motivated to come to school daily, their BMI (Body mass index) and HB (hemoglobin) levels have improved and their mental and physical growth is clearly visible.
This is a result of the supplementary nutrition program implemented by Cargill’s Animal Nutrition business in India , in partnership with NGOs, Charities Aid Foundation and ACTION, in a government school in Rangampeta, Rajahmundry, Andhra Pradesh. The aim of the program is to improve overall health and well being of children from marginalized communities. In addition, a water tank has also been installed in the school so that children have regular access to safe and clean drinking water.
“The Nutrition Program that was started in our village a year ago, has brought a lot of changes in our children. They are now growing healthy as well as have become regular in attending schools. We express our gratitude to the people supporting us” –Parents of Vattikuti Durga Sai & Veeravenkata Satya Sai, who are being supported under the program.
In addition to providing nutrition supplements, the children undergo a health check every month and their height, weight, BMI and HB levels are recorded and a proper health card is maintained for each student. Marked changes have been noticed in the overall growth and development of these children since the inception of the program a year ago. This has included, student’s attendance rate improvement from 72% to 98%. And almost 90% of students have shown improved BMI and HB status and the participation level of children in various school activities has also increased.
Speaking on the occasion, Chief Guest Mr. N.Ramakrishna Reddy, MLA said that “ Here most of the industries are giving gifts and token occasionally for charity work. But the supplementary nutrition intervention by Cargill is an innovative and sustainable approach towards helping children to be consistently healthy. I believe this will improve their overall development and prepare them to be sound citizens of the country.”
Speaking on the program, Dasari Suresh, Plant Manager, Cargill’s Animal Nutrition business says, “This Nutrition Program is an extension of Cargill’s commitment towards feeding the nation in a responsible way and improving the communities where people live and work. We believe every child has the right to nutrition and healthy growth and our nutrition program is a step in this direction.”
"The Nutrition Program has given us a chance to work closely with the community and address the health and nutrition constraints faced by the children in Rajahmundry. We are glad that our endeavor on the ground has started to show improved results," said Guru Dutt, Executive Director, ACTION.
The program will continue in year 2 and more children are expected to benefit from the same.
About Cargill India
In India, Cargill’s operations started in 1987. It has businesses in refined oils, food ingredients, grain and oilseeds, sugar, cotton, animal feed and trade structured finance. Cargill Foods India, markets leading consumer brands of edible oils such as Nature Fresh, Gemini, Sweekar, Leonardo Olive Oil, Rath and Sunflower brand of hydrogenated fats. It also markets wheat flour under the Nature Fresh brand name. The Animal Nutrition business of Cargill provides animal feed and premix and nutrition for aqua, dairy and poultry. It markets animal feed and premix under the brands such as Provimi, Purina, Citura and Cargill. The Grains and Oilseed crush business originates grains & oilseeds at 240 storage locations. It employs more than 2,000 employees working across offices and plants and a network of warehouses and depots.
About Cargill
Cargill provides food, agriculture, financial and industrial products and services to the world. Together with farmers, customers, governments and communities, we help people thrive by applying our insights and 150 years of experience. We have 149,000 employees in 70 countries who are committed to feeding the world in a responsible way, reducing environmental impact and improving the communities where we live and work. For more information, visit Cargill.com and our News Center.