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Eat Green Peas For Greenpeace!

Usually, eating vegetables just meant someone was on a diet, but I learned last Tuesday at the Greenpeace event held at Canon Megamall that eating local produce doesn’t just promote a healthy lifestyle, but it also affects ecological balance positively.

Ms. Virginia Benosa-Llorin, Food and Ecological Agriculture Campaigner for Greenpeace Southeast Asia, explained the connection between eating homegrown fruits and vegetables and the ecological balance.

 

 

“Meat consumption of the Filipinos is getting higher and based on the study of the Food Nutrition and Research Institute, the trend of eating fruits and vegetables is going lower. It could be because of people’s lifestyles now, it’s more convenient to buy meat or processed food. In convenience stores you can just buy microwaveable packed meals.

Along with that, eating habits have changed. The habit of going home, cooking for your family, bonding with them while cooking, that’s slowly fading. Processed foods give off bigger greenhouse gas emissions, they leave more carbon footprint. When you eat more fruits and veggies, especially if locally grown, the use of transport is cut, and planting would increase because the farmers will plant more because there’s a demand.

Kids nowadays don’t know certain local vegetation anymore like kamias or kaimito, because they’re getting replaced by imported fruits that of course get here by transporting them, and that adds to the carbon footprint.”

The activity was led by watercolor artist, Alessa Lanot, a vegetarian and owner of Pipino vegan restaurant! In partnership with IFEX, she invited watercolor artists to participate in painting their favorite fruits and veggies to help raise awareness for this campaign.

 

 

Before the painting ensued, each participant indulged in snacks that were in keeping with the theme for the afternoon, provided by Pipino, which was pancit canton, buffalo cauliflower, and tofu sisig.

 

 

Each of the artists brought their A-game and came up with beautiful artworks of the produce of their choice. Here are a few of them!

 

Black Mungbean by Louise Anne and Pumpkin seeds by Alexis Ventura of @inkscribbler 

 

Kale by Mayang Frigillana

 

Sigarilyas by Cheryl Joyce Owen

 

Pili Nut by Megan Dino

 

Broccoli by June Digan

 

 

In tapping this group of artists, Greenpeace Philippines aims to disseminate information in a light manner, not so hard sell. And this group’s creative ways will help because people’s knowledge or interest about vegetables and fruits are becoming less and less, so they thought of partnering with Alessa just to make it more appealing and fun.

 

 

Cover photo art: Avocado by Kat Gosengfiao
Peas by Cynthia Bauzon-Arre
Monggo by Alessandra Lanot
Photos by Chris Clemente