Mission & Vision
The idea for Mesa ni Misis stemmed from my
frustration that healthy cooking was costing me so much. Many of the recipes I would find
online required fresh ingredients that are not readily available in the Philippines, and if they
are, come at a high price. I first started reading about the benefits of local fruit and
vegetables when I was breastfeeding my son 8 years ago. All the leafy greens, such
as malunggay and saluyot, had all the properties to increase breast milk. I wondered why
growing up, we never ate many Filipino vegetables.
Our Aim
I started introducing local vegetables to my kids in the form of purees and later on sauces,
mincing them finely so that they wouldn’t notice. I also noticed my food bill go down, the
more I bought local vegetables and that they were readily available all year round. The more
I read and experimented with recipes, my eyes opened up to the healing and medicinal
properties our local fruit and vegetables have. Malunggay, guyabano, and mangosteen have
recently gained popularity as the ‘new’ healthy fruit—fruit that Filipinos all have grown up
with. I wondered, why weren’t we eating more?
The perception of eating local has a lot to do with how Filipinos think society views them.
People in the lower income brackets are the ones who use formula milk and milk substitutes
when feeding their babies, when they are the ones least able to afford them. Why? In the
documentary Fed Up, former New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg sums it up perfectly,
“It’s the people who are least able to know whats good for their health who are the ones
certain industries cater to and try to focus their advertising towards.”
Similarly, in higher income brackets, people have also been programmed to think that the
western superfoods such as kale, broccoli, chia, and maca are superior to what we have in
our own country. The truth is that our own superfoods are just as good, if not better. The
problem is that no one talks about it and they haven’t been promoted in large scale media.
Ever since kale became a popular food, farmers abroad have had to multiply their production
of the crop. In the Philippines, our local farmers have next to nothing because no one
consumes the crops they produce, because its not talked about or consumed.
I also noticed that many less fortunate people get sick by preventable diseases, such as high
cholesterol and diabetes, which lead to complications. All of these illnesses start with
lifestyle. Too much oil, fat, starch, sugar and alcohol takes a toll on our bodies. Cheap and
instant food that is readily available by ‘tinge‘ or piecemeal, serves the under privileged
because of the way they earn. Most people earn daily wages anywhere from P250 to P500
per day and budget their food according to what is brought home. They opt for instant food
or low quality, questionable meat. We bust myths and old wives tales that many do not
know. We are open to ideas and love working with communities.