How Will You Innovate to Feed the World? – Investing in Nutrition Part II
Improving nutrition of children and women will help your economy grow. This means you need to invest in systems infrastructure, health services, nutrition education that reaches everyone, including the most vulnerable. Help finance food production and processing projects – most food is processed by small, local, family-owned and managed enterprises, not giant multinationals. These small enterprises are the lifeblood of nutrition, they need (and deserve) your help.
Did you know that $1 invested in nutrition gives a $16 return? Nutrition is about GDP growth: well-nourished children are 33% more likely to escape poverty as adults and each added centimeter of adult height can lead to 4% increase in wage rates.
The world is not on course to meet its aim of eradicating malnutrition by 2030:
- Progress to reduce stunting among children under 5 is too slow.
- The number of overweight children under 5 is rising. There is less than 1% chance of stopping the rise in obesity and diabetes by 2025.
- Famines, conflicts, and climate-induced disasters are making many malnutrition situations worse.
- Exclusive breastfeeding of infants has marginally increased but progress is too slow.
- Anemia among mothers has increased since 2012; no country is on course to meet the target.
- The number of children who are stunted is increasing in Africa.
While the statistics paint a dire picture, still more rigorous data is needed to ensure accountability. Data gaps are hindering accountability and progress. We need better, more regular, detailed and disaggregated data, disaggregated by wealth, gender, geography, and age. National averages are not enough to see who is being left behind.
Whoever you are, and wherever you work, in a poor country (under-nourishment) or a rich country (over-nourishment), you can help end malnutrition. So eat healthy, and convince those around you that good nutrition means better lives for all. Insta-Pro can play a unique role for you with equipment sized for local processors who can create highly digestible, sterilized and stabilized ingredients for food or feed. If you’re interested in learning more, give us a call.
