Among the people most at risk from a nutritional standpoint are the mothers, children and refugees who depend on emergency and developmental feeding programs in developing countries. Under U.S. Public Law 480, Title II--the Food for Peace Program--the United States annually donates more than 2 million metric tons of food aid commodities to refugee and maternal and child feeding programs worldwide, with the dual goals of enhancing food security and supporting broad-based economic growth. In emergency situations, food aid may be the only buffer against starvation.

But does this food provide recipients with adequate levels of the micronutrients essential to human health and development? The question is germane, in that micronutrient deficiencies are well-documented in the developing world. The most common nutritional disorder worldwide is iron deficiency anemia (IDA). IDA lowers resistance to disease, impairs development, reduces stamina and increases the risk of neonatal, infant and maternal mortality. Clinical vitamin A deficiency also is a chronic problem, second only to protein-calorie malnutrition among nutrition disorders. Among other things, vitamin A plays an important role in maintaining good eyesight, healthy bones and teeth and a strong immune system.

The addition of these and other micronutrients to the government specifications for food aid commodities beginning in the 1980s represented the most significant change in the nutritional requirements for food aid since the program's inception. It also reflected the growing awareness among health professionals and the international aid community of the vital role minerals and vitamins play in human health and development. This was a positive step in light of the stated goals of the food for peace program, but nearly two decades lapsed before the government instituted requirements for the regular testing and monitoring of micronutrient levels in P.L. 480 commodities (USDA, EOD-56).

The new federal attention to quality control came as a response to findings from an investigation that SUSTAIN undertook on USAID's behalf in 1997. Our work on the Vitamin C Pilot Project and the Micronutrient Assessment Project involved a comprehensive evaluation of food aid micronutrient content from points of production to consumption. SUSTAIN documented such problems as low and inconsistent micronutrient levels in food aid commodities leaving production sites, inadequate federal oversight of quality control processes in the manufacture of food aid commodities, as well as significant micronutrient losses during meal preparation by food aid recipients.

To begin to address these issues, SUSTAIN, working with advisors from USAID, USDA and the food industry suggested more rigorous micronutrient specifications for food aid commodities, and improved quality control protocols and auditing at the points of commodity manufacture. USDA issued new regulations to this effect as well as a Total Quality Control Systems Audit (TQSA) program designed to assure future compliance with micronutrient specifications. When SUSTAIN subsequently reviewed the situation for USAID, (see the micronutrient compliance review) we found that important progress had been made by commodity manufacturers in complying with the new regulations. However attention to specific protocols for quality control audits still was needed. SUSTAIN hopes to focus new program efforts on improving USDA's TQSA program, and on marshalling food technology options to prevent micronutrient losses during the cooking of food aid commodities.

In conjunction with its technical support activities in micronutrients to USAID and USDA, SUSTAIN revised the Commodity Reference Guide, Parts One and Two in 1999-2000. This document provides information on food aid commodities distributed under the Title II PL 480 Program (Food for Peace Program). Part One lists the commodities distributed through the program. SUSTAIN updated the list to include commodities currently distributed under the program and expanded information on commodities to include micronutrient, storage and other specifications. Part Two provides guidance on selecting food aid commodities for Title II programs, and includes updated guidelines for program design and commodity selection; key considerations for five Title II food aid programs; and annexes for use in designing food aid programs and calculating ration packages. The CRG is now housed on the USAID website at www.info.usaid.gov/hum_response/crg/.

For more information about SUSTAIN’s projects related to enhancing the quality of food aid commodities, click below:

Vitamin C Pilot And Map Projects
Compliance Review