Addressing Severe Malnutrition in Haiti

Slide show: Haiti initiative

Haiti is the most impoverished country in the Western Hemisphere and one of the poorest countries in the world, with 80 percent of the population living in poverty. The devastating earthquake in 2010 drew the world’s attention to the many challenges facing Haiti, including malnutrition. One in three children in Haiti suffer from malnutrition.

Food supplies and other foreign aid provide short-term relief – but can’t solve the long-term challenges of severe malnutrition and poverty. That’s why Abbott and its foundation, the Abbott Fund, are teaming up with Partners In Health (PIH) to try a new approach. By combining the unique expertise and resources of a global health care company and a leading nonprofit organization, this partnership will empower Haitians to create local, sustainable solutions to severe malnutrition, while helping to strengthen long-term economic development.

Abbott, the Abbott Fund and PIH are working together as part of a $6.5 million partnership to build a nutritional food production facility in Haiti to significantly expand local production of Nourimanba, a highly nutritious, peanut-based ready-to-use therapeutic food used to treat severe malnutrition in children.

The initiative also aims to empower local communities by supporting local farms and promoting economic development. Haitian workers will handle facility construction, and Haitian farmers and workers (above) also will handle most of the production of Nourimanba, from start to finish.

Abbott Nutrition engineers and scientists like Dan Schmitz (left) are joining PIH staff in supporting all aspects of the project, including sharing expertise and training to develop the skills of local workers.

Haitian farmers harvest peanuts, the main ingredient in Nourimanba. In Central Haiti, PIH works with more than 200 Haitian farmers who supply peanuts. Increasing the production of Nourimanba will further strengthen local communities by expanding agricultural development -- helping to rebuild a stronger, more economically independent Haiti.

Haitian workers sort peanuts by hand to prepare for Nourimanba production. Nourimanba is made from peanuts combined with milk powder, oil, sugar and a specially formulated vitamin mix. It is ready to eat and does not require mixing with water or refrigeration.

Haitian workers roast peanuts on gas stoves to prepare for Nourimanba production.

Prior to the opening of the new facility in 2012, Abbott food science experts are working with PIH to improve peanut sorting, roasting and other aspects of production to expand output and ensure high product quality and safety.

Ground peanuts are mixed with other ingredients to produce Nourimanba. Pictured here, a worker fills a Nourimanba container by hand.

Abbott architects survey the future site of the PIH nutritional production facility in Central Haiti. Abbott experts in science, engineering, quality, manufacturing and other areas will help to design and construct the facility.

Architectural drawing of the new PIH nutritional production facility in Central Haiti. Groundbreaking for the new facility is planned for mid-2011, and the facility is expected to begin operations in early 2012.

Ready-to-use therapeutic foods like Nourimanba have dramatically improved health outcomes for children with severe malnutrition.

Working together, Partners In Health and Abbott hope to expand the production of Nourimanba to reach tens of thousands more of Haiti’s children suffering from severe malnutrition.

Longer term, the team hopes to introduce a new model of sustainability – by helping Haitians develop and sell nutritious foods such as peanut butter – with the profits supporting the continued production and free distribution of Nourimanba.

The new plant will improve and expand PIH’s production of Nourimanba, a peanut-based therapeutic food specifically formulated to treat severe childhood malnutrition. Nourimanba is a high-calorie, high-protein, fortified paste that is ready to eat and requires neither refrigeration nor mixing with water – which allows for treatment to be given at home and not just in a hospital, thus avoiding the cost and risks of in-patient treatment.

The production facility is planned to break ground in early 2012, with operations expected to begin by the end of the year. Initial production will focus on Nourimanba, but longer-term, the facility also can produce non-medical food products like peanut butter, which can be sold to support the plant’s continued production and free distribution of Nourimanba to children in need.

Every aspect of the partnership is targeted at driving economic and agricultural development. The plant is being built by local construction workers and is being staffed locally as well, with the guidance and support of PIH staff and Abbott scientists, engineers and quality and manufacturing experts. The peanuts used for production are currently grown by 200 local farmers. Once the facility opens, increased production will drive demand for additional crops, creating new jobs and business opportunities at local farms.

Our partnership with PIH is part of Abbott’s broader work to expand access to health care in Haiti. Since 2007, Abbott and the Abbott Fund have provided more than $55 million in grants and product donations to help address critical health needs in Haiti, including maternal and child health, diabetes, HIV/AIDS and malnutrition. For more information on Abbott’s broader work in Haiti, click here.

Haiti's New Nourimanba Manufacturing Facility

Nourimanba, a ready-to-use therapeutic food with a peanut butter base, helps address malnourishment in children. To meet growing demand for Nourimanba, Abbott is building a new processing plant in Haiti. Tour our new plant with this silent animated rendering, which follows production from the delivery of raw peanuts, through roasting, then on to final processing and packaging. The plant will greatly increase production capacity for Nourimanba as well as helping to strengthen the local economy.