Six months after launching with 21,000 daycare children, Manila City Mayor Francisco “Isko” Moreno Domagoso’s YorMilk program now reaches 62,000 public school students who receive fresh milk three times a week.
The program now forms a complete farm-to-city ecosystem that benefits dairy farmers, cooperatives, the national government, and the children of Manila simultaneously.
The mayor made the disclosure in an interview on DZRH News program The Situation Report on Tuesday, September 15, explaining how a childhood memory of Klim powdered milk and NutriBun evolved into one of Manila’s most visible nutrition programs.
He said the program was born from two inspirations: his own memory of the free milk and food given to public school students during his elementary years in Tondo, and national data showing alarming levels of stunting and malnourishment among Filipino children that he had seen and been shocked by.
Domagoso said the program’s design deliberately creates a complete economic ecosystem rather than just a procurement transaction.
“Itong YorMilk na ‘to, ang maganda rito: farmer, kooperatiba, national government, tapos for the first time ang buyer, local government. Kaya ang nangyari dun, parang buong ecosystem. Natulungan pa natin ‘yung mga farmer, ‘yung mga cooperative na-empower, then the national government is achieving their national goal,” he said.
The name YorMilk combines “Yor”—taken from Yorme, the colloquial street name for mayor created by reversing the syllables of the word—with “Milk,” branding the program in a way that is instantly recognizable to Manila residents and rooted in the city’s everyday language.
Domagoso said the milk goes directly from the cooperative’s farm to a bottling facility and then to Manila schools—no middlemen, no delays, guaranteeing freshness that powdered milk or UHT products cannot match.
“Kasi from the farm to bottling ng coop, then dire-diretso na kaagad sa Maynila,” the mayor said.
He said the children’s reaction has been enthusiastic: They look forward to YorMilk days and the program has visibly improved the children’s skin and energy, giving the mayor confidence that the nutritional impact is real and measurable.
