Program: Golden Rice – Summer 2024 Research Trip

“Investing in early childhood nutrition is a surefire strategy. The returns are incredibly high.”
— Anne. M. Mulcahy

​“GOLDEN RICE” Project – Luzon Island, Philippines

Summer 2024 Research Trip – FEED Program, Nathan Rogers

On the northern Philippine Island of Luzon, in a rural area where Mt Pinatubo is the center, lies the territory of an indigenous people group known as the “Aeta” people. Living in tiny villages on the slopes of the Mt Pinatubo volcano, these 100+villages contain a population ranging from 50 to 200 people per village, who live mostly on a non-cash subsistence economy.

Because of their poor diet and lack of basic nutrition, their children suffer a horrific mortality rate- almost 50% of the children fail to reach adulthood.  The general life expectancy of a child born today into the Aeta culture is only 16 years — only half of them will survive longer.  This unacceptable and deplorable reality has been addressed by several attempted solutions; however, none have had a significant impact.

Now comes a new and promising resource, known as Golden Rice.  This a variety of rice (Oryza sativa) that is GMO-produced to biosynthesize beta-carotene, a precursor of vitamin A. This rice can produce a fortified food in areas that already grow white rice, but this Golden Rice will provide 200% of the RDA of Vitamin A.

This summer  2024 research trip is to follow-up on previously planted crops and their impact upon children’s health , and also to issue more Golden Rice to farmers selected and qualified to plant crops as part of the research.

This project is part of Servants International’s F.E.E.D. program-   “Food, Education, Enhanced Diets” using Golden Rice.

Our F.E.E.D. program is under the direction of Jim Walters, the Executive Director of Servants International, who has a long history with the Aeta people and the Philippines in general.