Three winners meet the challenge of developing ‘More Sustainable and Effective Approaches for Delivering Micronutrient Powders.’

Winners of the $25,000 open innovation challenge seeking More Sustainable and Effective Approaches for Delivering Micronutrient Powders (MNPs)—sponsored by Scientists Without Borders and The Sackler Institute for Nutrition Science, both programs of the New York Academy of Sciences, and DSM's humanitarian nutrition think tank, Sight and Life—have been announced. To initiate the challenge, the three organizations partnered to identify and accelerate solutions to the complex global challenge of addressing both malnutrition and sustainability.

According to Scientists Without Borders, with some 2 billion people worldwide suffering from “hidden hunger” (the deficiency of essential micronutrients, such as Vitamin A, B-vitamins, zinc, and iron, even where sufficient caloric intake might exist), MNPs are a critical tool in tackling global malnutrition among children under the age of five, in low-resource settings and refugee camps. Approximately 200 million MNP packets are distributed each year by governments and humanitarian organizations, including UNICEF and the World Food Programme. However, the current foil sachets in which the powders are packaged cannot be recycled, repurposed, burned, or composted, creating large amounts of collateral waste in these settings. This challenge therefore sought innovative ideas for more sustainable and effective approaches to delivering these critical supplements.