The Unite Food Program (UFP) now supplies fortified maize flour to the Tanzanian public as part of an Africa maize flour fortification strategy that envisions “a micronutrient malnutrition-free Africa.” UFP is working with the international organization Sanku Project for Health Children (Sanku) to add the critical micronutrients of Folic acid, Vitamin B12, Iron, and Zinc Oxide to maize flour. Aross East Africa maize constitutes 50% of dietary intake which makes the fortification of maize flour one of the most direct, powerful, and efficient avenues through which to combat devastating micronutrient deficiencies that compromise immune systems, hinder child growth and development, and negatively affect human potentials and outcomes.
UFP maize, cleaned and ready to be milled into flour.
The UFP mill is now outfitted with a dosifier — fully automated and monitored remotely by Sanku — that adds a precise amount of micronutrients to the flour as it runs through the weight sensitive grain hopper. The added nutrients meet the government’s standards for fortification.
Women with small children are primary customers at UFP HQ in Dar es Salaam.
Did you know…?
30% of the world’s population experiences micronutrient malnutrition (a.k.a. “hidden hunger”).
Micronutrient deficiencies are the leading cause of intellectual disability in children, preventable blindness among adults, and maternal death during childbirth.
1 in 2 children worldwide are iron, zinc or vitamin A deficient, while 2/3 of women of reproductive age suffer from at least one form of micronutrient deficiency.
200,000,000 children suffer from mental impairment in the first 5 years.
8,000 children die everyday from malnutrition.
UFP Program Manager Clara Wilson Ngowi in one of the UFP storage rooms demonstrates to guests how the hermetic Agro-Z grain storage bags work. UFP uses the Agro-Z bags to ensure the safe, mold- and pest-free storage of UFP grains without the need for any post-harvest application of pesticides or chemicals.
“Fortification of maize flour at UFP will help unlock the potentials of children and Tanzanians by correcting nutrient intake shortfalls.”
— Clara Wilson Ngowi, UFP Manager
Home to 66+ million people, Tanzania is the largest country in East Africa. The population is predominantly rural, and agriculture is the mainstay of the economy employing ~66% of the population. Maize, rice and beans are the staple food crops largely produced by small-scale peasant farmers and grown under low input, rain-fed conditions. The Unite Food Program (UFP) is a social enterprise whose mission is to empower these small-scale farmers with a secure market for their crops at fair market prices as well as to provide healthy, tasty, and affordable staple food options to all Tanzanian people. Click HERE to see a video about UFP.
Unite the World With Africa Foundation Founder & Executive Director Anne Wells with the team at Unite Food Program, October 2023.
Anne Wells with Unite Program Director Anty Marche visiting a UFP retailer in Dar es Salaam.
UFP’s Salvius Nchimbi always hard at work securing and fulfilling retail and wholesale orders.
Sources: Sanku Project for Health Children; The Lancet, November 2.2.2022; https://projecthealthychildren.org; The Micronutrient Forum, GAIN and USAID; Africa Maize Fortification Strategy 2017-2026, by Dr. Wilson Enzama, Development Economist; Data Report