Ruth Lauren

The Future of Food: Innovation in food commodities and partnering with the private

sector

Lauren Ruth

Country Director, Land O’Lakes Zambia

Thursday, February 23, 2012

Session Goals

1. Identify better ways to integrate NACS with commodity reporting and requisition, to ensure that the correct quantities of prescribed food are delivered, avoiding stock outs and food wastage.

2. Review the current trends and innovations in local food commodity production and alternative food formats; examining whether these options are cost effective, increase food accessibility, and meet patients’ needs.

3. Explore and brainstorm options for engaging the private sector, creating a pathway for sustainable retail food commodity production, while appealing to the end consumer.

Land O’LakesLocal Food Procurement and

Distribution

• USDA/Zambia Local and Regional Procurement Program (food baskets/HEPS)

• USDA/Bangladesh Local and Regional Procurement Program (locally produced cereal bars)

• USAID/PEPFAR/FFP – Zambia – specialized food formats w/ private sector

• School Feeding Programs (milk and other)

“Going Local”

Many programs are trending towards local production/procurement

US Department of Agriculture invested in a year long series of “Local Regional Procurement” programs, several in Africa

Demonstrated: it is possible to procure safe, timely, cost-effective, locally produced food

Engaging local producers, ensuring food safety, packaging, and timely production.

What is being produced locally?

Select processor, engage processor

(Develop tight default clauses))

Issue a competitive tender, using specs

(local newspaper, commodity exchange,

blind volume)

Developing tight product specifications

(packaging, quantity, delivery, parameters)

Develop product formulation

(Standards? CODEX/local bureau of standards)

Identify a local quality control/inspections

firm

(Engaging a 3rd party firm )

Assess the local processing sector

(is there adequate capacity/safety/QC?)

Key Elements of Local Production

Supply Chain and Demand…

• Existing supply chain systems (public/private) – MSL/CHAZ

• Integrating food commodities into public systems (essential medicine? Public system requirements)

• “Push” vs. “Pull Systems”

• Leveraging support of existing USAID programs, working to deliver ARVs, and supporting delivery of other essential medicines

Getting it Right, Integration & Communication

Goals of an integrated supply chain:

• Avoiding stock outs and wastage

• Ensuring just in time delivery

• Coordinating NACS data and commodity procurement

• Clear roles and responsibilities for all players

Msereke Health Clinic - Zambia

Report and Requisition

Commodity Management

Old Food, New Food

• What are the traditional supplemental and therapeutic food formats - why do they work?

• USAID – “Delivering Improved Nutrition” –Recommendations for Changes to U.S. Food Aid Products and Programs

• Modifying existing formats to include other local ingredients

• Exploring new food formats

Traditional Supplemental Food Format

•Corn Soya Blend (CSB)

•High Energy Protein Supplement (HEPS)

•Typically corn-based

•Utilizing other local staple foods as blended product-base

4 Key Components of a Nutritionally Suitable RUTF

1. A staple as the main ingredient - preferably a cereal.

2. A protein supplement from a plant or animal food - beans, groundnuts, milks, meats, chicken, fish, eggs, etc. To be practical such foods must be low-cost, and this requirement has pushed development towards legumes and oilseed as these are cheaper than products containing milk or other animal products.

3. A vitamin and mineral supplement - a vegetable and/or fruit.

4. An energy supplement - fat, oil or sugar to increase the energy concentration of the mix.

http://fex.ennonline.net/102/4-3-2.aspx, Emergency Nutrition Network (ENN), Field Exchange (FEX), Steve Collins and Jeya Henry, FEX issue 102

Alternative RUTF Formulations

http://fex.ennonline.net/102/4-3-2.aspx, Emergency Nutrition Network (ENN), Field Exchange (FEX), Steve

Collins and Jeya Henry, FEX Issue 102

RICE –SESAME RUTF 1

BARLEY –SESAME RUTF 1

MAIZE –SESAME RUTF 1

Attributes of an Ideal Formulation

In addition, an ideal RUTF formulation must have the following attributes:

• Good nutritional quality (i.e. protein, energy and micronutrient content)

• Long shelf life

• Highly palatable with a good taste

• A consistency and texture suitable for feeding to children

• Require no additional processing prior to feeding

• Amino acid complementation for maximum protein quality

• Product stability

• Ingredients should be easily available in developing countries

http://fex.ennonline.net/102/4-3-2.aspx, Emergency Nutrition Network (ENN), Field Exchange (FEX), Steve Collins and

Jeya Henry, FEX Issue 102

Will You be My Partner?...engaging the private sector

• Exploring how food processors and retailers can play an ongoing role in developing, promoting, and supplying fortified foods on the retail market ;

• Retail supply chains and social marketing

• looking at retail supply chains and social marketing.

Figure : Olympic Industries has branded their new commercial cereal bar (product on top) with the name of their most popular biscuit (product on bottom), Energy

Commercial cereal bar, Energy

School feeding program cereal bar

COMACO – connecting local producers with local production

Social Marketing – acceptance and market share

Fortified

• New and old systems – what is appropriate for your program?

Laying the foundation – what systems need to be in place before exploring new options?

How can they be integrated into FBP programming?

Vouchers, the way of the future?

Traditional voucher program

Paper vouchers

• WFP uses scratch cards and cell phones to allow beneficiaries to choose when and where to pick up their food

• Beneficiaries are given a SPLASH card containing two codes. When the first one is entered into the shopkeeper’s mobile phone, it shows him or her how much food to hand over

• WFP partnered with local vendors who already carried existing food products (e.g. maize meal) to serve as outlets

• The mobile delivery and tracking (MDT) system reduces the overheads of traditional food delivery and gives local markets business

Innovations in voucher systems

WFP “SPLASH” voucher program Zambia 2010

http://www.wfp.org/stories/zambia-cellphones-and-scratch-cards-streamline-rations-flow

• Difficult to implement for a food by prescription program

• Private-sector vendors must be stock adequate quantities of prescribed food in appropriate sizes in rural areas

• Prior to establishing such a program, would need to ensure product availability and efficacy

• More difficult to track adherence

Innovations in voucher systems cont’d

WFP “SPLASH” voucher program Zambia 2010

http://www.wfp.org/stories/zambia-cellphones-and-scratch-cards-streamline-rations-flow

Can this be applied to NACS?

- It is a staged process, which requires private-sector participation

- The difference between the food aid that SPLASH enabled, was that vendors were already stocking these readily available food products (e.g. maize meal, beans, oil) – in standard quantities.

- If/when patients go to redeem

- Food by Prescription requires specific daily dosages, which

Thank you

Thank you!