Find out more on: Peanut Butter for the Hungry Help Give a Starving Child a Fighting Chance this Holiday Season Meds & Food for Kids         Related links:         Project Peanut Butter         60 Minutes News Story         Miracle Food Saves Lives Peanut Butter for the Hungry Peanut Butter for the Hungry is an initiative of the commercial peanut industry in the United States (growers, shellers, manufacturers and allied industry members) to help malnourished children in places where resources are limited. In 1999, a scientist named Dr. Andre Briend with the World Health Organization developed a product that combined powdered milk, vegetable oil, sugar, vitamins and minerals and peanut butter into a “ready-to-use therapeutic food” (RUTF) which is revolutionizing the treatment of severe malnutrition in some of the most desperate places on earth.  This ready-to-use therapeutic food is based on the tried and true formula F-100 milk which has been used for generations to treat malnutrition in third world countries.  By replacing the liquid milk with protein-rich peanut butter and powdered milk, the new F-100 milk formula becomes shelf stable and transportable, allowing aid workers to treat malnourished children in a completely new way.  Instead of checking into hospitals, children are fed at home by their mothers, using the ready-to-use food product.  No water is needed, so the food stays bacteria free, and does not need to be refrigerated.  Results have been amazing, with a 90% or higher success rate, and aid groups are anxious to expand usage.  This new food is particularly effective for treating children 6 months to 2 years, which are among the most vulnerable.  Current production capacity for the ready-to-use food is approximately 25-30,000 metric tons, while the estimated potential for the product is anywhere from 200,000 metric tons to 750,000 metric tons.  The peanut industry has committed financial and intellectual resources to the development of this product as a humanitarian endeavor.  Goals for the Peanut Butter for the Hungry initiative currently are: 1.  Provide local infrastructure and build capacity in the “hungry” region, by encouraging the development of local production facilities in the countries where the product is being used. (Such as Africa, Haiti or elsewhere) 2.  Provide technical support for local manufacturers in such areas as food safety, manufacturing processing, etc. 3.  Through a partnership with the University of Georgia CRSP program, provide assistance to farmers in needy regions who are growing peanuts, as a long term solution for sustainability. 4.   As a shorter term solution, provide US grown peanut butter as an ingredient in local production. 5.  To help meet surging demand in the case of emergencies such as tsunami’s famine, drought or other disasters, encourage production of ready-to-use food in the United States. 6.  Communicate the efficacy and success of peanut based therapeutic foods to aid groups and government agencies such as USAID and the World Food Programme. Help Give a Starving Child a Fighting Chance this Holiday Season In the spirit of giving back, consider giving a donation to Peanut Butter for the Hungry on behalf of your friends and family this holiday season.  What better way to embrace the meaning of the season? APC will send a card to your recipient(s) in your name, along with the 60 Minutes DVD on Plumpy’nut and a full color program brochure. We will use 100% of the funds collected to directly assist organizations providing peanut-based ready to use therapeutic foods to needy children.  Donations to Peanut Butter for the Hungry through the Peanut Foundation are tax deductible. If you are interested, fill out the attached form and fax to Stephanie at APC, (703) 838-9508 as soon as possible! Meds & Food for Kids (MFK) is leading the charge to cure child malnutrition in Haiti, the poorest country in the Western hemisphere.  MFK combats childhood malnutrition using an innovative new approach: Ready-to-Use Therapeutic Food (RUTF).  Our product is Medika Mamba, an energy dense peanut butter, significantly fortified with protein and nutritional supplements.  The name Medika Mamba means “peanut butter medicine” in the Haitian Creole language. Malnutrition is the underlying cause of death for many children in Haiti.  Medika Mamba restores children to health within the family setting.  It needs no cooking or preparation, doesn’t spoil, and is easily administered by caregivers.  And it is tasty! Medika Mamba is produced in Haiti.  It’s production benefits the Haitian economy by employing and purchasing locally, and MFK works extensively with farmers to improve their agricultural practices. Over 13% of children in Haiti are malnourished.  Meds & Food for Kids is scaling up production to provide Medika Mamba nationwide.  Click on the video link below to learn more about this effort and how the U.S. is seeking to assist farmers in Haiti so that they can grow a better quality raw material for this life-saving product. The American Peanut Council and its members support MFK through product and cash donations and encourage everyone to become involved to help save children’s lives.  To learn more about Meds & Food for Kids and how you may help, go to their website at: http://www.medsandfoodforkids.org/ New Video on how Medika Mamba is saving lives of the most vulnerable: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WCKOmhZHuL4 And see how the University of Georgia is helping local Haitian peanut farmers: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qn0i7jCO4gQ&feature=related

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