Biñan City Rep. Marlyn “Len” Alonte has proposed measures for a virology institute and one for a food bank, saying both bills contain and represent lessons learned from the pandemic wherein the country faced the Covid-19 and the resulting hunger and poverty from community quarantines. 

“The food bank bill also includes lessons from continuing incidents of food wastage due to oversupply, overharvests, poor farming planning, and supply chain issues,” she said in a statement.

Alonte added that the virology institute bill includes transfer of vaccine agencies and offices under the purview of the Department of Science and Technology to the institute, to which the institute is intended to be linked for the purposes of policy and coordination.

“House Bill (HB) 3692 is a comprehensive policy and program bill to establish and maintain food banks in every city and municipality all over the country for the collection, storage, and delivery of edible food waste and the recycling of inedible food wastes,” she emphasized.

HB 3692 institutionalizes a National Zero Food Waste Scheme, a Food-related Waste Reduction Strategy for corporations and local governments, processes for the distribution of edible food surplus, and training of sanitary inspectors, according to the vice chair of the Committee on Appropriations.

She added that HB 3692 gives the National Nutrition Council (NNC), which was founded in 1974, a number of new powers and responsibilities. Providing “technical assistance to non-profit, charitable or other social mission-driven organizations operating food bank facilities in the procurement of wholesome, safe and edible food surplus from the food-related businesses” is the first of these new NNC mandates.

Photo Credit: Office of Biñan City Rep. Marlyn “Len” Alonte