THE CRISIS

Myanmar is living through one of the worst hunger emergencies in its history. The World Food Programme now reports that 16.7 million people, nearly one in three, are acutely food insecure, a sharp rise from 13.3 million in 2024. Myanmar now ranks fifth in the world for the highest number of people facing severe hunger. The March 2025 earthquake has deepened the crisis further, destroying homes, infrastructure, and livelihoods in an already devastated country.

Eden has watched this hunger crisis unfold, and we've seen exactly how it drives people into the hands of traffickers. The cycle is devastating and brutally simple: poor nutrition leads to illness, illness creates medical bills, medical bills create debt, and debt bondage becomes the doorway to exploitation.

SO WHAT ARE MICROGREENS?

Research published in Scientific Reports in 2025 found that compared to mature vegetables, microgreens have higher vitamin concentrations and improved mineral bioavailability. Studies have found certain varieties contain 4 to 40 times the nutrient concentrations of the same plant when fully grown. Peer-reviewed research has also confirmed their anti-inflammatory, anti-cancer, anti-bacterial, and antidiabetic properties. 

For families surviving on rice and very little else, that nutritional density is life-changing.

THE PROGRAM

Microgreens are grown by survivors of human trafficking and those at high risk of trafficking in two Eden sites in Yangon, utilising urban agriculture techniques to grow thousands of trays in less than half an acre.

The microgreens powder is produced by trafficking survivors utilising dehydration machines. These trafficking survivors receive monthly stipends, which economically empowers them and their families. Each survivor supports up to 4-5 family members, meaning the project has incredible ripple effects in terms of reducing malnutrition and trafficking vulnerability in at-risk communities.

All supplies are sourced from within Myanmar, keeping the program sustainable and locally beneficial. Over the last year, Eden distributed a total of 2,350 bags of microgreen powder to nutritionally vulnerable individuals across multiple partner organisations, which include:

  • 1300 bags distributed to international victims of trafficking in immigration detention facilities.

  • 200 bags distributed through the Myanmar Health Assistant Association (MHAA) to hospital patients, particularly those with TB.

  • 100 bags distributed to a nursing home for elderly residents.

  • 100 bags distributed through the Myanmar Nutrition and Dietetics Association (MNDA) for cancer and diabetes patients.

  • 50 bags monthly distributed to Heal Myanmar Organisation for patients with poor diet and malnutrition.