Support CRY’s kitchen garden initiative to reduce malnutrition in children

The nutrition received in the first 1,000 days after the birth of a child is crucial days for brain development and future growth of the body. The damage from undernutrition in early life is largely irreversible. Undernourished children perform below potential in school and tend to have lower work capacity and productivity as adults.

While the government of India is working towards achieving food security and ensuring public nutritional requirements are met, the public distribution system (fair price ration shops) only distributes staples like Rice, Wheat and hardly covers the demand for micronutrients supplements – iron, vitamin A, iodine, zinc, folate, vitamin B12 and vitamin D like that can only be met through fruits and vegetables.

Therefore Child Rights and You (CRY) is implementing a multistate project focusing on promoting Kitchen Garden. The initiative aims to reduce malnutrition by enabling communities and government institutions to grow vegetables and fruits rich in micronutrients.

Across the intervention models, the program targets vulnerable and marginalized communities and families with a high prevalence of malnutrition and anaemia, which includes both, Severe Acute Malnourished (SAM) and Moderately Acute Malnutrition (MAM) children.

The Kitchen Gardens programs are implemented at two levels:

1- Individual household levels as the backyard kitchen gardens

2- Institutional level where the produce can be used in mid-day meals cooked at ICDS/Anganwadi Centres

Through this program CRY is focusing on the following things:

• Home Kitchen garden orientation that includes training on nutrition, hygiene, and food preparation demo
• Establishing linkage with Government Krishi Vikas Kendra Home garden diversity and food fair and IEC material on locally available fruits and vegetables
• Periodic health monitoring of women and children (malnutrition, Anemia, etc)
• Training for households especially women on low-cost home garden management
• Training project staff by conducting sessions for new technologies in integrated home garden management
• Seed bank development of indigenous seeds that are more resilient and require less or no fertilizers (specific to local culture/ geography/ social festivals)
• Leadership training to potential leader women farmers in groups Exposure visit for kitchen garden farmers
• Awareness and training workshops for mothers of the identified children to sensitize them on the use of the kitchen garden

With support of generous donors like you, CRY has set up over 600 kitchen gardens across 7 states in India.

While this is a step in the right direction, we have a long way to go and need your help.

Your donation to support CRY’s kitchen garden initiative can provide underprivileged children and communities with a sustainable source of nutrition and give them a chance at a healthier tomorrow.

Donate today and save tax by claiming a 50% tax exemption u/s 80G of the Income Tax Act.