USA Rice COO Sarah Moran reports on the organization's sustainability efforts
Jun 06, 2024
CHICAGO, IL – More than 70 food aid suppliers and stakeholders met here this week to review current and future initiatives and trials, including reports on fortified rice efforts, supply chain challenges, quality control measures, and packaging testing.
The United States Agency for International Development (USAID) provided an update on the Commodity Credit Corporation (CCC) $1 billion initiative for international food assistance, stating that they plan to begin tendering in June 2024 with the goal of spending the $950 million by the end of the calendar year. Those funds will be used to purchase U.S. commodities and cover freight costs. Pilot projects, which will take longer to commence, will use the remaining $50 million of the initiative.
USA Rice provided updates on the sustainability efforts of U.S. farmers and outlined the role of U.S. rice in food assistance programs, noting the increasing use of fortified rice which aligns with broader food assistance goals. In 2021, the World Food Programme (WFP) committed to increasing the proportion of fortified staples distributed each year from 60 percent in 2020 to 80 percent in 2025 and fortified rice will be responsible for a significant portion of that increase.
During the meeting, WFP shared their recent fortified rice field trial, which included testing both extruded kernels and rinse-resistant coating, stored in high heat and humidity conditions in India for two years. Results found no differences between the two fortification technologies but did find that vitamin A is highly sensitive and degrades quickly.
Food aid shipments typically comprise 3-5 percent of U.S. rice exports. From October 1, 2023, through May 22, 2024, the U.S. has shipped 80,000 tons of rice ($64.8 million) to 31 countries.