Bicam oks Pangilinan push for more school meals, direct buys from farmers

The bicameral conference committee on the 2026 national budget has approved Senator Francis “Kiko” Pangilinan’s proposal to expand the milk component of the DepEd School-Based Feeding Program and to source food directly from Filipino farmers, fishers, and dairy producers under the Sagip Saka Act.

Congress approved a nearly P1-trillion DepEd budget, more than doubling the school feeding allocation to P25.7 billion from P11.7 billion. 

The feeding program will be extended from 120 to 200 school days, including 30 days of milk feeding.

The expanded program aims to improve nutrition for kindergarten to Grade 1 learners and support Grade 2 to Grade 6 pupils who are wasted to severely wasted, while ensuring direct procurement from accredited farmers’ and fishers’ cooperatives, cutting out middlemen.

Milk feeding will be handled by the National Dairy Authority and the Philippine Carabao Center, using fresh milk bought directly from local dairy farmers instead of imported powdered milk, benefiting both children’s health and local producers.IMT