Plumpy'nut facts for kids
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Plumpy'Nut, a ready-to-use therapeutic food (RUTF)
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| Nutritional value per 92 g | |
|---|---|
| Energy | 2,100 kJ (500 kcal) |
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45 g
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30.3 g
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Protein
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12.8 g
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| Other constituents | Quantity |
| Ingredients | peanut paste, vegetable oil, powdered milk, powdered sugar, vitamins, minerals |
| †Percentages estimated using US recommendations for adults. Source: Nutriset, France |
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Plumpy'Nut is a special peanut-based paste. It comes in a plastic wrapper. This paste helps treat very serious malnutrition, which is when someone doesn't get enough nutrients. A French company called Nutriset makes Plumpy'Nut.
Eating these small packets, which weigh about 92-gram (3+1⁄4 oz), means fewer people need to go to the hospital. It can be given at home, so more people can get help. Scientists often call Plumpy'Nut a Ready-to-Use Therapeutic Food (RUTF). Other RUTFs include products like BP100.
Nutriset faced some criticism from groups like Médecins Sans Frontières (Doctors Without Borders). This was because Nutriset protected its special rights (called patents) for Plumpy'Nut. However, by 2018, the patents for Plumpy'Nut had ended in the US, UK, and the European Union.
Contents
How Plumpy'Nut Is Used
Plumpy'Nut is used to help people in emergencies, especially when they are severely malnourished. It helps children gain weight quickly. This can stop them from getting very sick or even dying.
The product is easy for children to eat. It comes in a strong package that is simple to open. This paste is like a fortified peanut butter. It contains fats, dietary fiber, carbohydrates, and proteins. These are important macronutrients. It also has vitamins and minerals, which are essential micronutrients. Peanut butter itself is rich in vitamin E and niacin.
Plumpy'Nut can last for two years. It does not need water, special preparation, or a refrigerator. Because it is so easy to use, it has made treating malnutrition in famines much better. In the past, severe malnutrition usually meant staying in a hospital. But with Plumpy'Nut, children can get treatment at home. It also gives them the calories and essential nutrients they need to get healthy.
The United Nations has recognized how useful Plumpy'Nut is. In 2007, they said that many children with severe malnutrition could be treated at home. This was put into action in 2007 by UNICEF and the European Commission's Humanitarian Aid Department in Niger. Plumpy'Nut fits the UN's definition of a Ready-to-Use Therapeutic Food (RUTF).
Plumpy'Nut is not for everyday eating. It is also not for malnutrition that is not an emergency. Interestingly, peanut allergies have not been a problem when using Plumpy'Nut.
What Plumpy'Nut Is Made Of
The ingredients in Plumpy'Nut include a "peanut-based paste." It also has sugar, vegetable oil, and skimmed milk powder. Plus, it is made stronger with extra vitamins and minerals. Many people say Plumpy'Nut tastes "surprisingly tasty."
How Plumpy'Nut Is Made
In 2010, most Plumpy'Nut was made in France. However, this special food is easy to make. It can be produced locally in places where peanuts grow. This is done by mixing peanut paste with other ingredients provided by Nutriset.
Several companies and one non-profit group in the U.S. state of Rhode Island also make Plumpy'Nut. There are six factories in African countries: Niger, Burkina Faso, Ethiopia, Sudan, Madagascar, and Kenya. There is also one factory in Haiti and another in India.
A full two-month treatment for a child cost about US$60 around 2010.
The Story of Plumpy'Nut
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Plumpy'Nut was created in 1996. It was inspired by the popular spread called Nutella. André Briend, a French child nutritionist, and Michel Lescanne, a food engineer, invented it.
Nutella is made of sugar, palm oil, hazelnuts, cocoa, skimmed milk powder, and other things. Plumpy'Nut, on the other hand, is a mix of peanut paste, vegetable oil, and milk powder. It does not have chocolate. Instead, it contains sugar, vitamins, and minerals.
Patent Challenges
Nutriset had special rights (patents) in many countries for making nut-based food pastes. They tried to stop other companies from making similar products without their permission. In some places, like at least 27 African nations, non-profit groups can make the paste without paying a fee.
In 2010, two non-profit groups in the US tried to sue Nutriset. They wanted to make Plumpy'Nut without paying a fee. One group's president said that "some children are dying because Nutriset prevents other companies from producing a food which could save their lives." Some people thought that Nutriset having all the control was not good. But Nutriset won the case.
Later, Nutriset faced more criticism from Médecins Sans Frontières. This was after Nutriset threatened legal action against a Norwegian company. Médecins Sans Frontières said Nutriset was being too strict with its patents. They felt this was wrong for a product that helps people in need.
A study for UNICEF suggested that it would be better to have many different companies making RUTF products. This would help meet global needs better. Because of the criticism, Nutriset started allowing companies and non-profit groups in some African countries to make the paste without paying fees.
The patents for Plumpy'Nut in the USA ended in 2017. They also ended in the UK and the European Union in 2018.
See also
- Citadel spread
- Famine relief
- Humanitarian daily ration
- List of peanut dishes
- Mantecol
- Nutribun
