Take it as a complement
Aug 07, 2018
WEST LAFAYETTE, IN – Last week, USA Rice’s Food Security Consultant Rebecca Bratter was a featured speaker on a panel about “Affordable Protein Supply for Institutional Meals Around the World” at a conference sponsored by the World Initiative for Soy in Human Health (WISHH).
The event was part of the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Cochran Fellowship program designed to provide technical training and information to help global trade partners create their own successful school and hospital feeding programs with U.S. commodities. More than 25 attendees from Sub-Saharan Africa and Latin America participated in the week-long training here.
While the program was focused on protein, USA Rice was invited to speak about the role of fortified rice in nutrition, as a complement to protein.
“There is still a lack of detailed information about the role of fortified rice in nutritional formulations as it is a new commodity in U.S. global feeding programs,” said Bratter. “Almost all of the questions I received after our panel were about fortified rice and how different countries can procure and incorporate this product into their national school feeding and nutritional programs. People were interested in procuring both the blended fortified rice as well as the fortified kernels to blend with their own home grown rice.”
Many of the representatives in attendance have participated in the implementation of McGovern Dole School Feeding Programs that have concluded, and are now responsible for creating national programs to ensure the continuation of the nutritional benefits of school feeding.
“This is a new opportunity for U.S. rice around the world and falls in the gray area between food assistance and commercial import. We look forward to following up with the contacts made and exploring this new potential end use,” Bratter concluded.