MANILA, Philippines?The Department of Education (DepEd) wants elementary and secondary schools nationwide to plant malunggay, integrating the activity in science classes and community outreach projects.

DepEd Memorandum Order Number 234 enjoins bureau directors, regional directors and school division/city superintendents to support fully the initiative.

The Bureau of Plant Industry (BPI), in line with agreements between the DepEd and the Department of Agriculture (DA), will provide technical assistance in terms of plant propagation and processing of malunggay leaves and fruits for food. It will also provide planting materials.

Education Secretary Jesli Lapus is a staunch advocate of malunggay as a food supplement for undernourished school children. Studies have shown that the vegetable is one of most nutritious and useful plants in the world.

The DA?s Biotechnology Program Office (BPO) promotes malunggay as a ?power gulay? as it is seven times richer in Vitamin C than oranges, four times richer in calcium and two times richer in protein than milk, four times richer in Vitamin A than carrots and three times richer in potassium than bananas.

DepEd Health and Nutrition Center (HNC) director Thelma Santos said, this school year, her office would publish a malunggay recipe book for teachers, school canteen managers and members of the Parents, Teachers and Community Association (PTCA).

Malunggay recipes ranging from snacks like polvoron, fishballs, buchi-buchi and lumpia to dishes like malunggay con caldo, mal-pinakbet and malulai or malunggay laing are included in the book, which will also teach how to prepare shakes and juices.

Santos said people could grow their own malunggay or use the powdered form.

Every school year, some 2.5 million undernourished children start school. The DepEd wants to reduce the number by at least 5-7 percent through its feeding program. (Biolife news service).