Now *this* is a social movement that deserves commendation. Was this a spontaneous effort or is it organised by an institution?

Jamie

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Snack Wars out to better eating habits
Phoe Wa
Myanmar Times
29 March 2019

During the day, Mawbi City Market attracts thronging crowds like any market arena, but it is a little different to see humming around sundown. There are people milling about, squeezing fruits and vegetables, chatting with their friends and looking out for anything interesting at a good price to take home long after most markets have closed. It is the March 17, and that means people are coming from all over - leaving work, school or home, to get delicious snacks from the market stalls for a special late event.

From when the stalls open at about 5 in the evening, the selling time is only about 45 minutes. After that, the shopkeepers have to throw their hands in the air and declare that everything is gone. Often, the crowd doesn’t want to believe it, and continue pushing toward the front. Once the reality of the situation has really sunk in, everyone shifts to another stall to grab up what is left there.

For the more immediate cooked snacks, like Myanmar pea pancakes fried on an open fire, the milling crowd can become a little perilous. The customers want to be as close as possible to the hot burner in order to scoop up the next available pancake, pushing vendors to shout instructions on safety.”It’s properly cooked! Let me have the next one!” They shout.

For the love of snacks

Though it’s tough work, there’s a real dedication to street snacks from the vendors. Namely, it’s to combat the influx of cheap available snack food that the vendors consider unhealthy and culturally invasive through a group effort known as Snack Wars.

Snack Wars is an organised vendor group to replace high saturated fats and salt, like in chips, and things like gummy worms and soda, with loads of sugar, with traditional fare. Their foods are made with local ingredients and, at least compared to the kinds of foods one can find at the 7/11, relatively healthy. The goal, according to the snack vendors, is to save children from developing health problems to do with their eating.

“We’re at war with unhealthy snacks,” U Mtyint Swe of Snack War explained. “This is a war against food additives and chemicals. We’re looking at reintroducing traditional snacks to children and the community. Not just in Mawbi Township, but all across the country”.

The idea came to life last year, first celebrated in Taung Twingyi Township and Motetama Township with groups of vendors coming together to provide Myanmar snack dishes with rules around the ingredients, preparation and having environmentally friendly service and minimal waste.

Introduced to Mawbi this year, ethnic treats were a massive success. Burmese snacks such as Mote Lin Mayar, Burmese new year snacks, coconut jelly, semolina cake, ethnics snacks such as Shan htamin chin, arrluu htamin, hin htote and yaknine mote ti are the Snack War customer favourites. 44 stalls are currently involved in snack production under Snack Wars, with Mingalardon and North Oakkalapa townships becoming involved.

“We would remind parents to think of their children’s health because health problems linked to food consumption are on the rise,” U Myint Swe said.

According to the Snack Wars plan, the ceremony begins at 5:30pm, but now, at just quarter to six, all the snacks have been sold. The success of the event cut it short. The sellers reported that while it’s tough work, they’re very happy to be involved.

“This is the fastest I’ve ever sold out, it might be a world record!” Daw Thin Thin Soe, a Mote Sein Paung seller, said with a laugh.

Some sellers reported that they did not gain back what they had invested in partaking in Snack Wars, but they were happy to help the project regardless. In the end, it may not have been large scale enough, with the apparent hunger of the crowd.

“The snacks are delicious, but we are not full. There are more people than food. We are not satisfied yet!” Daw Mya Aye, a customer, said.

https://www.mmtimes.com/news/snack-wars-out-better-eating-habits.html