How to prepare fast, nutritious, delicious breakfast

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Know what meal of the day is the hardest to prepare?

Many Moms and homemakers say breakfast. The food preparation itself is quite simple since most breakfast fare needs only to be fried or heated up. But planning breakfast menus and serving up something new, delicious and nutritious everyday is the big challenge.

Feeling sleepy coupled with the pressure of meeting morning schedules can be overwhelming. Planning wholesome breakfast menus, doing the actual cooking and cleaning up afterwards can be such a hassle that some are pushed to go for junk food or skip breakfast all together.

That’s a big no-no, of course, because breakfast is the key to getting better physical and cognitive performance daily. A 2019 study in the Journal of the American College of Cardiology also showed that skipping breakfast is associated with an 87% risk of cardiovascular death. Eaters of high-quality, nutritious breakfasts meanwhile get long-term heart health and stave off obesity and diabetes.

What will make breakfast preparation easy? Having on hand a variety of easy to cook, protein-rich, delicious breakfast food is key. One of the challenges of preparing breakfast is serving up non-monotonous food for different days of the week. When there are different choices to serve up each day, this most important meal of the day becomes a joy for those who eat it and those who make it.

Bounty Fresh, one of the leading providers of fresh and processed poultry and meat products in the country, has launched a campaign that makes breakfast preparation fast, efficient and such a joy. A wide array of trusted Bounty Fresh food products that are tasty, nutritious and easy to prepare are now part of its “Basta Baon, Bounty Fresh” collection.

Two new products – Bounty Fresh Chicken Tocino and Bounty Fresh Chicken Tapa –are being launched with the campaign. Fresh pork tapa and tocino, breaded treats like torikatsu, chicken nuggets, chicken sticks and pre-marinated, easy-to-prepare chicken cut-ups that come in favorite chicken parts are part of the package.

The Bounty Fresh breakfast line also includes premium specialty eggs with specialized nutritional benefits. Eggs with organic Selenium (a powerful antioxidant that fights stress and defends the body from chronic conditions that can cause heart disease and cancer); Vitamin D (helps build bones, support immune health and keep muscles and brain cells working) and Omega 3 (essential fats that are good for the heart, brain, eyes and joints) together with Bounty Fresh Cage Free Specialty Eggs and Bounty Fresh Premium Eggs with fewer saturated fats and cholesterol -- emphasize the importance of making eggs the star of the breakfast table.

“These breakfast fare fuel the family for school, work, and daily activities, every day of the week,” says Stephanie Balois-Guerrero, Vice President – Head of Marketing of Bounty Plus Inc.

“It is the expression of Bounty Fresh’s desire to provide convenience for today’s busy households by giving homemakers a wide range of choices that are as easy to prepare as 1-2-3. From farm-fresh golden yolk eggs, chickens raised with no antibiotics ever; clean, fresh, tender meat products and breaded chicken favorites, these food choices make breakfast preparation simple without compromising taste or nutrition.”

“Whoever does the grocery shopping can just stack up on the breakfast treats, store them in the freezer, and pick out one breakfast surprise after another on different days of the week. Breakfast will never be boring, repetitive and hard to prepare ever again,” Balois-Guerrero added.

The Bounty Breakfast fare can be enjoyed at home or packed as baon for work, school or short trips too.

DepEd urges whole-of-government action as EDCOM2 report turned over to PBBM

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MANILA, 29 January 2026— The Department of Education (DepEd) called for a whole-of-government approach to address the country’s learning crisis, as it formally received the EDCOM 2 Final Report and turned over the National Education and Workforce Development Plan (NatPlan) to President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. in a ceremony at Malacañan Palace on Thursday.



“The report includes the NatPlan, which offers us a 10-year plan to address the learning crisis, that can be solved if we act in unity and with determination and consistency,” President Marcos said.

Education Secretary Sonny Angara said the recommendations of the Second Congressional Commission on Education (EDCOM 2) underscore that while DepEd has begun implementing major reforms, many of the most critical changes require coordinated action from other government agencies, Congress, local governments, and the private sector.

“The learning crisis is not a DepEd problem alone. The roadmap is clear, but delivery will depend on how well the entire government moves together,” Angara said. “We are ready to work closely with Congress and all our partners to ensure that these reforms are felt in our schools and by our teachers and learners.”


Early childhood, nutrition body coordination

DepEd said findings reinforce the urgency of strengthening early childhood care and development, particularly nutrition interventions for children aged 0 to 5, which it noted cannot be addressed by the education sector alone. The Department pointed to the need for stronger coordination and clearer accountability among agencies involved in early childhood nutrition and care, including the National Nutrition Council and the Departments of Health, Social Welfare and Development, and Interior and Local Government.



The agency also echoed the report’s emphasis on sustained national and local funding to support the conversion of daycare centers into child development centers, a function largely carried out by local government units with national government support.

Workforce plan alignment

Likewise, DepEd highlighted persistent gaps between education and employment outcomes, underscoring the need for closer alignment with the Commission on Higher Education (CHED), the Technical Education and Skills Development Authority (TESDA), and the Professional Regulation Commission (PRC), particularly in Senior High School, technical-vocational pathways, and teacher education and licensure.



DepEd cited the report’s support for establishing a unified labor market information system involving the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA), the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE), and TESDA, as well as fully operationalizing enterprise-based training and industry-led upskilling programs.



Congress, DBM critical to financing and structural reforms

Angara said carrying out the reforms will also depend on Congress updating several key education laws, including rules on how local governments use education funds, expanding the Adopt-a-School program so more private groups can support learning programs, and modernizing teacher licensing to ensure quality training and hiring.



The Department also flagged the need to adjust laws governing school division management and teacher deployment, and to fully enforce existing measures that link education with jobs and skills training, so students move more smoothly from school to work.

The report likewise calls on Congress and the Department of Budget and Management to support staffing reforms across DepEd, CHED, and TESDA, noting that expanded mandates under K to 12, free higher education, and TVET reforms have outpaced existing human resource structures.


The Department also cited the report’s call to strengthen inter-agency coordination, including reinforcing the Education and Workforce Development Group as a platform for joint planning, aligned budgets, and shared accountability.


Angara said DepEd is ready to play its part but emphasized that sustained reform will require institutional discipline across government and across multiple administrations.


“We already see alignment under President Marcos’ leadership. The challenge now is execution — staying the course, aligning budgets and incentives, and holding ourselves jointly accountable for learning outcomes,” he said.

Invest in Effective Solid Waste Law Implementation and Waste Reduction, Not WTE - BAN Toxics

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As International Zero Waste Month draws to a close, environmental NGO BAN Toxics urged the Philippine government to abandon plans to pursue waste-to-energy (WTE) as a solution to the country’s escalating waste problem. The call came after Congresswoman Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo announced during the 25th anniversary of RA 9003, or the Ecological Solid Waste Management Act of 2000, that she intends to file a bill amending said law to allow the use of WTE technology for waste disposal. RA 9003 was the first law she signed as president.



According to the group, the government should first focus on effectively implementing RA 9003 and addressing persistent gaps, noting that improper waste disposal, insufficient infrastructure, and lack of public awareness remain widespread. BAN Toxics emphasized that the law has yet to be fully realized, even after 25 years.



The 2023 Commission on Audit (COA) report shows that only a fraction of barangays have operational Materials Recovery Facilities (MRFs), with just 39 percent of barangays (16,418 of 42,046) served by MRFs in 2021. Many local government units also lack adequate sanitary landfills, with only 29.25 percent (478 of 1,634 LGUs) having access to SLFs, leaving much of the country’s waste improperly managed or sent to dumpsites instead of environmentally sound facilities.



Under RA 9003, LGUs are mandated to divert at least 25 percent of their solid waste through reuse, recycling, composting, and other resource recovery activities, with targets increasing every three years. However, official assessments show that many LGUs have struggled to meet these diversion requirements in practice, with much waste still unmanaged or improperly disposed.



The Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) has also acknowledged a lack of recycling infrastructure and waste processing facilities as a key barrier to effective implementation, adding that waste segregation at the source remains inconsistent across local governments.



“We should first conduct a comprehensive assessment of RA 9003, and invest our efforts and resources in improving its implementation before considering waste-to-energy or other burn technologies,” said Jam Lorenzo, BAN Toxics Deputy Executive Director and Head of Policy Development and Research.



According to Lorenzo, WTE is not clean energy, as it produces a wide range of toxic chemicals, including persistent organic pollutants (POPs) that remain in the environment for a long time. Citing a biomonitoring study by Zero Waste Europe from 2023–2024, Lorenzo said that even the most advanced waste incineration technologies emit unintentionally produced POPs, such as dioxins and furans.



He also noted that WTE facilities prefer dry, inorganic waste such as plastics due to its high energy content. “WTE is often framed as a solution to plastic pollution, but burning plastics creates new environmental and health risks by releasing toxic pollutants. Instead of reducing plastic waste, it only encourages continued virgin plastic production derived from fossil fuels, reinforcing dependence on extractive industries that drive pollution and climate change.”



The DENR estimates that the Philippines produces about 61,000 metric tons of solid waste every day, 12 to 24 percent of which is plastic. This translates to around 163 million plastic sachet packets, 48 million shopping bags, and 45 million thin-film bags used daily.



BAN Toxics is advocating for a Zero Waste framework to address the waste crisis, calling for decisive action to reduce or eliminate waste at the source by cutting reliance on plastics, especially single-use plastics, and ensuring accountability from producers and corporations for the full lifecycle of their products. The approach emphasizes designing products and systems that prevent waste from being generated, while promoting reusable and refillable packaging, community-based recycling and composting, and behavioral change among consumers to adopt more sustainable habits.



“Waste-to-energy may promise an easy solution, but it is a false one. Easy fixes rarely solve systemic problems. Lasting change comes from investing in systems and infrastructure needed to properly implement our waste management laws and reduce waste at the source,” Lorenzo said.



BAN Toxics stresses the need for a fundamental shift from fragmented, “end-of-pipe” waste disposal to integrated, sustainable, and holistic approaches. The group notes that current siloed efforts by the government can be inefficient, costly, and environmentally harmful. It advocates for a systems approach that coordinates technologies, policies, and community actions to achieve more sustainable waste management outcomes.