Aksi Kolektif untuk Meningkatkan Mutu Pilihan Pangan dalam Pencegahan Gizi Buruk Anak

Abstract

The prevalence of underweight among children under five years old is related to the high frequency of consuming low-quality snacks. The community service program (PPM) of IPB University aims to encourage collective action among food managers to produce high-quality snacks made from local food ingredients. The approach of this PPM initiative is Asset-Based Community Development (ABCD), which focuses on the potential and strengths of the community, including natural, human, social, and infrastructure capital. Community empowerment implemented through training was primarily focused on enhancing the capacity of food managers, particularly family food managers and vendors. This capacity enhancement involves skills in creating, modifying, and innovating new snack products and developing branding for these products. The training results indicated that most participants (64%) successfully improved their skills in producing goat milk ice cream and banana flour while maintaining safety and hygiene standards. Participants were also able to create product branding independently. The mentoring processes are ongoing. Post-training observations revealed that participants began re-evaluating their previous snack choices and transitioning to higher-quality options. This indicates the emergence of a new social structure that supports better food selection practices and opens new avenues for sustainable change. The follow-up actions for this PPM initiative involve providing continued assistance to food managers to strengthen the pattern of high-quality snack choices for children, promoting new snacks made from local food ingredients to broader food managers, and offering incentives to community leaders who actively contribute to organizing collective actions aimed at improving the quality of snack options to prevent child malnutrition.