Project Name:

Assessing the feasibility of distributing micronutrient Sprinkles within a Title II food aid and Maternal and Child Health program in rural Haiti

Project Category:

Formative, Operational Research

Status of Project:

Start date: March 2005

Status: Completed

Implementing Organization:

Cornell University, International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI), World Vision Haiti

Donor/Funding Agency:

US Agency for Aid and Development (USAID)

A formative research study conducted in the context of an evaluation of a World Vision (WV) Title II Food Aid and Maternal and Child Health and Nutrition (MCHN) program, showed that children under 2 years were consuming inadequate quantities of iron and zinc. Given the constraints of including adequate amounts of animal foods in children's diets, and the inability of even fortified donated foods to bridge the iron and zinc gap, an IFPRI-Cornell-WV team is now assessing the possibility of using dietary supplements like micronutrient Sprinkles to improve the micronutrient content of infants' diets. A two month supply of Sprinkles taken daily was given along with rations distributed on a monthly basis within the WV and MCHN program.

To determine whether Sprinkles distribution is feasible and effective in reducing anemia in infants and young children within a Food Aid and Maternal and Child Health Program in Haiti.