Recognizing the importance of micronutrients in the diets of at-risk groups, USAID commissioned SUSTAIN to conduct an assessment of micronutrient content and retention in P.L.480 food aid commodities. SUSTAIN nutrition experts tested select commodities (corn soy blend, wheat soy blend, wheat flour and bulgur) at both production sites in the United States and at delivery sites in Tanzania, India, Peru and Bolivia. SUSTAIN's Vitamin C Pilot Activity, and the subsequent, broader-based Micronutrient Assessment Project (MAP) revealed significant fluctuations in the level and consistency of vitamin C and A content in P.L. 480 flour blends as they left manufacturing plants. The lack of uniformity in product varied among plants, and in many cases no problems were noted. Some manufacturers, however, clearly needed to improve their fortification procedures.

In addition to inconsistencies and often low incorporation of micronutrients at production, SUSTAIN documented significant problems with USDA's oversight of quality control in the manufacture and fortification of P.L. 480 commodities. Finally, SUSTAIN discovered that much of the labile vitamin content of food aid commodities upon delivery was subsequently lost as recipients cooked these commodities for consumption. Thus, even though losses during transport and storage were minimal, the vitamin A and C content of food aid meals proved to be well below expectations.

In both the Vitamin C Pilot Activity and the MAP study, SUSTAIN received critical input from an advisory panel of experts drawn from food processing companies (such as General Mills and Kellogg's), commodity producers, as well as USAID, USDA and FDA.

Based on our findings in these studies, SUSTAIN recommended that commodity micronutrient specifications and compliance programs be strengthened, that U.S. producers of food aid commodities adopt improved fortification procedures, and that monitoring and enforcement protocols be developed.

As an adjunct to the MAP activity, SUSTAIN evaluated the feasibility of introducing a new method of delivering vitamin A in food aid--by incorporating it into P.L. 480 cooking oil. SUSTAIN's assessment of the technical and economic aspects of fortifying vegoil with vitamin A to P.L. 480 vegoil revealed that the vitamin is stable in the oil with appropriate packaging. SUSTAIN recommended the addition of vitamin A (as retinol palmitate) to P.L. 480 vegoil at the level of at least 60U/g, a recommendation that the USDA issued as a requirement on December 1, 1998.

In addition, the USDA issued requirements for compliance with new minimum end product micronutrient specifications in fortified cereal based foods provided under Title II, and specified vitamin A and iron as analytic markers for compliance. This was the first requirement ever issued for the regular monitoring of micronutrients in food aid commodities. In 2000, SUSTAIN undertook a follow-up Compliance Review of micronutrient content in food aid commodities, to assess whether the new micronutrient specifications were being met, and whether consistent and appropriate levels of micronutrients were being incorporated into food aid commodities.