Military rations eyed for relief ops

THE Philippine government should no longer include canned goods in its disaster relief packs, urging the switch to military rations instead for easier storage and distribution times of crisis, a congressman said on Thursday.

Meal, Ready-to-Eat (MRE) packs should be distributed in place of canned goods as it is also more nutritious than canned goods, Party-list Rep. Rodolfo M. Ordanes said, who recommended the move to Social Welfare Secretary Rexlon T. Gatchalian and the Trade, Health, and Science and Technology departments.

“It is time that we modernize the contents and packaging of our food relief packs. Canned goods should be phased out of the disaster response system,” he said in a statement.

“MRE food packages can be made nutritious, [and is] lighter and can contain more food than tin cans,” he added.

Mr. Ordanes said there should be “distribution controls” for MRE packs to prevent “pilferers, smugglers, and insurgents” from having access to it. — Kenneth Christiane L. Basilio