UA527

CARLOS ARDILA

FARMING: AN IMPERATIVE SUBJECT IN COLOMBIAN SCHOOLS

What are we doing in Colombia to fight against malnutrition? This is what the

inhabitants have asked themselves during the last 20, 30 or 50 years. Many

governments, leaders, actions have passed but none has managed to change the

conception of people or institutions. In Colombia the governments on duty have made

efforts to combat the population’s food insecurity however, there is no serious policy on

the matter.

According to the latest ENSIN 2015 National Survey of Nutritional Situation which is

carried out every 5 years in the country, in Colombia the overweight in childhood obesity

is equivalent to 17.5% which represents 2.7 million affected. It is also important to

mention that according to the aforementioned survey, Colombian children and

adolescents have a great preference for processed foods: 79.3% of this population

consumes sausages at least once a month, 51.9% fast foods, 83.7% soft drinks, 85%

packaged foods and 89.3%1 [CITATION Val19 \l 1033 ]. Likewise, there is a malnutrition

problem that demonstrates the influence of the socioeconomic condition of Colombian

households. Thus, in 2015 54.2% of every 100 households in Colombia were food

insecure, seven out of every 100 school children lack of food[ CITATION Uni19 \l 1033 ].

1
Obesidad infantil: una amenaza silenciosa
Por: Pamela Elizabeth Vallejo Figueroa, Iván Camilo Sánchez Barrera,
Jair Alberto Arciniegas Barrera, Fabio Escobar Díaz
Grupo de Estudios Sectoriales y de Evaluación de Política Pública
Ministerio de Salud
The problem of families in Colombia is directly linked to the socioeconomic stratum and

unemployment which according to the measurement of December 2019, indicated 2.6

million people without a job (8.7% more than in 2018).[CITATION MIn17 \l 1033 ].

In Colombia it is perceptible that there is a close relationship between hunger and

poverty, according to FAO, 4.4 million Colombians are undernourished (8.8 percent of

the total population) [ CITATION FAO17 \l 1033 ], and it can be argued the problem is
2

cultural and in many low-income families the issues mentioned above occur frequently:

malnutrition and obesity. Indeed, the eating patterns of families are affected by social

and economic factors which have a great impact on the choice and right of food to

consume.

Despite the fact that main cities in Colombia have areas suitable for cropping, the

supply and distribution of food is not equitable and families living in extreme poverty

lack access to education, housing, and therefore access to fair and healthy food is

restricted. Although the problem of many households in Colombia is cultural since

children consume what their parents can provide them, in terms of food the role that

education plays is important because it is in the classroom where children stay between

5 and 7 hours a day. Schools are an active part of the community in a population and

through serious and inclusive policies, schools demonstrate one of the most effective

ways to influence health through an education and food supply.[CITATION Pér01 \l

2
Colombia
Resilience Programme
2017–2020
FAO’s commitment to the Peace Agreement and resilience in Colombia
FOOD AND AGRICULTURE ORGANIZATION OF THE UNITED NATIONS Rome, 2017
1033 ]. However, schools and its teaching method must diversify and innovate.

Throughout we have seen that teaching methodology has been based only on the

primary classes which have been culturally transmitted to us from generation to

generation; Mathematics, Social Studies, Literature and others, although they are the

basics of an education have become monotonous and do not attract more attention in

the students.

To attract the attention of Students, it is imperative that educational institutions through

teachers develop practical teaching that allows them to develop physical skills and

healthy habits. In Europe a guide documented new methods of food education in

countries like Belgium, England and Spain where they placed a joint work between

teachers and students to help carry out their proposed objectives[ CITATION Dix99 \l

1033 ]. The teaching strategy is characterized by the orientation it gives to the actions

where parents, teachers, institutions, and students interact. An environment should be

created where environmental policies and strategies in healthy education take part

based on strong communication [CITATION Pér011 \l 1033 ].

Environmental education is a learning process that allows us a better understanding of

relationships of interdependence of human beings with nature, based on critical and

reflective knowledge of the biophysical, social, economic and cultural conditions of

societies.[CITATION Min03 \l 1033 ], with the intention of promoting knowledge,

abilities, skills, values and ways of acting, which fosters a culture of respect for the

environment [CITATION Lí191 \l 1033 ]. It is important to understand that in order to

build an ideal environmental scenario, education may help to become aware of the

issues that the country is going through in terms of nutrition, food access, but mainly to

involve new generations with care about health and the environment.

Creating healthy habits in Colombia is a difficult mission, the food system in the country

is not accessible to everyone and there is no law that promotes healthy eating. This is

particularly relevant for institutions in Colombia where school feeding programs have

been seen as a state obligation without taking into account the rates of obesity,

malnutrition, and poor eating habits caused by supply of foods with a high index of

caloric content or saturated, also promoted by social networks and advertisements,

which in many cases are allowed by the government and educational institutions.

[CITATION Vel19 \l 1033 ].

Frequently, children and adolescents have no option to choose what they consume

daily, furthermore, many studies show that food consumption patterns are promoted by

publicity on television and social media; because companies consider children a high

value target[CITATION Rom10 \l 1033 ]. In Latin America it is very common for large

food and beverage industries to promote or launch advertising strategies using schools,

since children spend several hours a day there and take advantage of the measures of

the government of each country which in this regard are ineffective[CITATION Gua17 \l

1033 ]. While the legislation in Colombia has established in the Political Constitution of

Colombia of 1991 the fundamental right that boys and girls have to a healthy and

nutritious food (Political Constitution of Colombia. Title 2. Chapter 2. Article 44 of July

1991 Colombia) and the government has developed technical tools and dietary

guidelines in health and education to promote eating habits, there is no regulation for

the media that restricts or limits the advertising and information that is provided to the

final consumer, in this case the children.

The Main School Feeding Program in Colombia “PAE” consists of supplying food to

students of economic strata 1 and 2, from preschool to high school. The program was

linked to the educational system in 2006 as an attempt to increase the enrollment of

students in urban and rural educational institutions and thus improve the cognitive and

learning process and reduce absenteeism, then in 2011 its management was

transferred to the Ministry of Education. [ CITATION DNP13 \l 1033 ]. The PAE has

worked in the urban and rural educational institutions of the country. Unfortunately, the

food provided by schools lacks a balanced and healthy diet. This has been caused due

to state governments have taken the PAE Program as a political flag and it has been

used as publicity during the campaigns of the candidates to hold positions as governors

and mayors in Colombia. Even thought to take over the distribution of food from

schools that host low-income students in urban and rural areas, the local and regional

government, through a bidding process, assigns resources to various bidders; who have

contributed sufficient amount of money to the candidate who wins the regional elections,

that bidder is the one assigned to execute the program.

Regarding the cultural and socioeconomic problem mentioned at the beginning of this

document now we are facing the corruption which directly pervades the food system

and fair access to it. This reflects the facts that the most affected are the students since

they are eating unhealthy food due to the ingredients to make up their breakfast and

lunch provided by school restaurants also managed by the company that won the

auction, are processed and canned, which increase the risk of malnutrition and obesity.

In contradiction many of the schools within their land have zones that are convenient to

growing food and have been underused. Otherwise family farming is the one that

supplies the granaries of the different countries, it faces problems of different kinds,

among which stand out the increase in production costs, decrease in government

support, market fluctuations ( low prices) that prevents them from reaching profit

margins and aggressive competition in business markets. [ CITATION Gor04 \l 1033 ].

Although there are some limitations for setting up a school garden in schools such as:

availability of time and schedules for teachers who will teach the subject of school

agriculture, they should be motivated to understand the benefits of the subject and

promote it[ CITATION Row10 \l 1033 ]. Other limitations are: limited capacities and lack

of technical knowledge on the subject , financial resources to hire experts on the subject

of school agriculture, areas to establish urban garden projects in city schools and

maintenance[CITATION Mar16 \l 1033 ], as well as convincing members of the

Colombian Congress to promote a law in the country that incorporates the government

organizations; there are many benefits of integrating agriculture inside the classroom.
In Malaysia, for example, studies have shown that through alternative ways of teaching

nutrition in primary school, children's knowledge improves and motivates them to

practice good eating habits throughout their lives[ CITATION Tal07 \l 1033 ].

Other benefits of including the class of growing food in the school curriculum are: It

allows to put into practice the knowledge of the basic classes, because integrating it

with farming practice class children can understand the impact of excessive use of

pesticides, selection of plastic and food waste[ CITATION Oze08 \l 1033 ]; helps to

understand the role of agriculture within the food production system and the

connections between nature and human needs[CITATION Kno07 \l 1033 ], Schools

provide frequent, high-quality opportunities for hands-on nutrition learning, [CITATION

Lea181 \l 1033 ]; school gardens are an important social tool since it allows interaction

with teachers and families, developing ethical values of coexistence, participation and

collaboration and are helpful to fight against problems related to infant feeding: obesity,

malnutrition.[ CITATION Muñ14 \l 1033 ]. Some studies have shown that through the

development of school gardens, students get interested in agriculture to the point of

improving the environmental quality not only of the educational institution but of the

community around them. Also through education they can improve consumption and

eating habits, also learn about the sustainable use of resources. Likewise, including in

the school curriculum the subject of growing food facilitates interaction with other

classes such as science, technology and history through practical application and the

implementation of the school garden[ CITATION Esk98 \l 1033 ].

In order to achieve progress all stakeholders must be involved (teachers, families,

volunteers, congressmen, schools, government entities, mayors, governors,) only in this

way the impacts on food and health will be visible, in addition integrating into education

curriculum the topic of teaching agriculture through gardens will allow awareness and

connection with cultural heritage and local food.[ CITATION Huy17 \l 1033 ]. Another

benefit of educating young people in agriculture is to financially support their family,

since through the basic knowledge of growing they can strengthen the entrepreneurship

of low-income families, minimizing the expenses of the family shopping basket.

Low income children in Colombia are forced to eating what the school restaurants

provide them supported by the inequitable and meager food system in the country, for

this reason it is important to break that emotional and cultural connection they have

been dragging from home either because of their economic condition or because of

what the school supplies, if children learn about farming it will help them to change

eating habits, improve health condition and become aware of the relationship between

human and natural resources. Also, having farming skills will be the first step to switch

fairly the current food system.

The shortage of fresh and organic products the population of the cities in Colombia had

get used to consuming through farming markets and galleries has been seriously

affected by the advance of the pandemic. The pandemic motivate us to become aware

of the importance of taking advantage of the land to promote a sustainable and resilient
agriculture[CITATION Cár20 \l 1033 ]. The social distancing caused by the quarantine

has increased the price of fruits and vegetables and the supply chain has been

interrupted by slowing down the consumption of fresh and local products. Due to this,

households are consuming products offered by large supermarket chains, therefore

they are forced to buy only what they offer. Only communities that own farms have

managed to get around this situation.

To improve the wages of low-income households is significant that family agriculture

projects can be incorporated through the country's productive chains and can be used

by school feeding programs[ CITATION FAO14 \l 1033 ], strengthening the academy

through the valuation of knowledge and its contribution to society, to the quality of life

and the competitiveness of the country.[ CITATION Uri11 \l 1033 ].

It is evident that the solution to the current problems of food access requires much more

than seeking the attention of young people towards agriculture, but it is one of the first

steps that must be taken as a society. We need a serious policy to adopt long – terms

measures to promote a sustainable and resilient agriculture. The learning tools provided

by school education must be used to achieve the purpose of changing the culture of

access to fair and equitable nutrition for all. Through education and knowledge, it is

possible to fight against the capitalist system that have the citizens plunged into a

system of segregation permeated by corruption and the benefit of a few.

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