In Philippines, Some See Birth Control as Path to Food Security

WORLD -- January 23, 2012 at 4:40 PM EDT

In Philippines, Some See Birth Control as Path to Food Security

In the Philippines, a growing population of people has led to a sharp decline in fish, a vital part of the diet. To address the problem, one organization is making birth control more readily accessible to those wishing to keep their families small.

In the next report in the series "Food for 9 Billion", airing Monday on the NewsHour, Sam Eaton of Homelands Productions goes to the fishing village of Humay-Humay. There, he speaks with families about their concerns that future generations won't enjoy the same access to fish as a food staple and way of life.

Resident Jason Bostero explains why he and his wife Crisna chose to have only two children: "I am a farmer and fisherman. My income is just right to feed us three times a day. It's really, really different when you have a small family."

A community-based family planning program is making condoms and the birth control pill "as easy as buying soft drinks or matches" in the village, according to the report.

Watch the full report here:

"Food for 9 Billion" is a multi-platform media project examining the challenge of feeding the world at a time of rapid social and environmental change. The project is a collaboration with Homelands Productions, the Center for Investigative Reporting, American Public Media's "Marketplace" and the PBS NewsHour.

Watch the first report in the series about how Egypt's rising food prices helped fuel the revolution:

We'll air more reports on food security and population this year. In the meantime, find out more about the world's famines, and the origins of the Twinkie in this interactive timeline by the Center for Investigative Reporting:

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