The third edition of YES! in 2014 aimed to stimulate sustainable development in the agribusiness sector, focusing on the three paradoxes linked to the Milan Protocol: the inequality in food distribution at a worldwide level, the competition between animals, automobiles and humankind for the consumption of agricultural production, and food waste.
The winning idea of the third edition was the ‘Food and Nutrition Hub’ by Gianna Bonis Profumo, a project which guarantees food security thanks to the empowerment of women in agriculture and the use of special poultry cages to fertilise the land.
In Southeast Asia, rural populations experience high levels of malnutrition, compromising the development of children into future healthy citizens. Malnutrition can be enhanced by improving home-based food production systems on which most rural livelihoods depend while improving the natural resource base through sustainable practices. By integrating and managing small livestock systems within home gardens, nutrient-rich foods are produced in a sustainable manner to improve dietary intake of mothers and children. Integrated family poultry systems improve soil fertility while generating time efficiencies, turning household waste into a valuable agricultural input, and generating small income opportunities. Home gardens and small livestock tend to be cared for by women, whose empowerment and control over assets have demonstrated important improvements on household nutrition and health. Thr
ough the establishment of Food and Nutrition Hubs in villages, women are encouraged to produce vegetables and animal-source foods dense in micronutrients and protein, and learn optimal feeding practices through nutrition education in a supportive and culturally appropriate environment. Enhancing women’s understanding on how to prevent and address stunting in a conducive space, the Food and Nutrition Hub, has the potential to impact on rural malnutrition in a sustainable manner.
