Half of the world's people, most of them poor and living in developing countries, have diets that are inadequate in protein, calories and/or micronutrients. Up to one-fifth of deaths and disabilities worldwide are attributed to undernutrition. Micronutrient deficiencies--the hidden hunger than can damage health even when diets are calorically adequate--have increasingly become a focus for concern in the international aid community. Approximately one-third of the world's population is affected by deficiencies in vitamin A, iron and iodine. Lack of adequate folic acid is also a significant concern during pregnancy. Clinical manifestations of these and other micronutrient deficiencies (birth defects, blindness, mental retardation, anemia and even death) affect half a billion people globally. Another two billion are marginally deficient in micronutrients, and unable to reach their full potential as parents, workers and citizens. The cycle of poverty thus continues.

One way to break this cycle is by effectively applying food science and technology to nutritional problems and challenges. Better, safer, and more nutritious products can be made available to at-risk populations through food science/technology applications such as micronutrient fortification of widely consumed foods; fortification of food aid commodities; and direct technical support to industries with the potential to improve the safety and nutritive quality of their products.

Micronutrient fortification of food staples and food aid commodities can be a relatively cost-effective means of helping to alleviate regional dietary deficiencies of one or more vitamins and minerals critical to good health and development. Adequate consumption of fortified food has been shown to improve micronutrient status in individuals. If made universal through a commonly consumed product, food fortification generally presents fewer logistic challenges and is less dependant on public sector support than supplementation as a means of addressing micronutrient deficiencies prevalent in populations.

Direct technical assistance and training to indigenous food industries in food fortification, as well as in basic food processing, quality control, packaging and marketing, can strengthen these businesses' institutional capacity to deliver quality products on a sustainable basis. Building the institutional capacity of these indigenous businesses can, in turn, have positive ripple effects with respect to community and regional development.

Micronutrient-fortified foods that are produced locally thus can yield both nutritional and economic benefits to at-risk populations. Correcting micronutrient deficiencies can boost immunological integrity, reduce maternal deaths, decrease infant and childhood mortality, strengthen cognitive development in children and boost adult work capacity. Poor nutrition during pregnancy and lactation places both mother and child at risk of death, birth defects, and disease, with potentially lifelong consequences. Conversely, well-nourished mothers are more likely to give birth to well-nourished children who grow and learn better, ultimately earn more, and are less likely to suffer from childhood diseases and diet-related chronic disease in midlife. Good nutrition is a potent antidote to poverty.

SUSTAIN has been instrumental in supporting three major uses of food science and technology to help alleviate malnutrition in developing countries. These activities are:

• Addressing micronutrient deficiencies through the APPLICATION OF MICRONUTRIENT TECHNOLOGIES:

SUSTAIN has supported micronutrient fortification of staple foods in developing countries by encouraging public/private cooperation and progress on micronutrient initiatives; by sponsoring research on the performance of different iron compounds that could be used to fortify corn masa flour, an increasingly popular food staple in Latin America; and by assessing each of the elemental iron fortificants currently in use today. It has widely shared its findings and recommendations with industries, governments and the scientific community through professional meetings and publications.

• Addressing Undernutrition in food aid recipients through FORTIFICATION OF FOOD AID:

SUSTAIN has explored how well P.L.480 commodities deliver micronutrients to food aid recipients--among the world's people most at risk from a nutritional standpoint, they include mothers, children and refugees who depend on emergency and developmental feeding programs. SUSTAIN identified serious problems with the micronutrient content of food aid commodities. Based on its findings, USDA revised and issued new micronutrient specifications for food aid commodities, issued requirements for analytic testing, and instituted a Total Quality Control Systems Analysis (TQSA) system to include regular audits of P.L. 480 manufacturer operations.

While much progress has been made, there is still work to be done.

• Direct assistance to developing country food industries through its VOLUNTEERS IN FOOD TECHNOLOGY:

SUSTAIN began operating as a volunteer-based project initiative to share U.S. food science technology and expertise with developing country food industries striving to provide consumers with healthier, safer and more nutritious products. SUSTAIN's volunteer executives and technical specialists, drawn from U.S. food companies, universities, and scientific and professional associations, have donated their knowledge and experience to developing country food industries in a variety of ways in order to solve a range of technical, marketing and nutrition problems. SUSTAIN has provided TECHNICAL ASSESSMENTS, TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE, AND TRAINING to food companies, food technology and nutrition institutions, and government agricultural and nutritional agencies around the world.

Welcome to SUSTAIN!