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Nutritious,
cheaper food supplement for Zimbabwe
Phyllis
Mbanje, The Standard (Zimbabwe)
September 29, 2013
http://www.thestandard.co.zw/2013/09/29/nutritious-cheaper-food-supplement-zimbabwe/
Two international
organisations have unveiled a nutritious and cheaper food supplement,
the e’Pap, in a bid to alleviate hunger in Zimbabwe.
The food supplement,
which costs less than a quarter of a dollar per serving, was introduced
by Miracle Missions in conjunction with e’Pap Zimbabwe.
Miracle Missions
is a Christian organisation involved in community work around the
country.
E’Pap,
which is already popular in South Africa, is a pre-cooked cereal
made from unrefined maize and soya bean with 28 added nutrients,
to focus on addressing micronutrient deficiencies, also known as
hidden hunger.
E’Pap
Zimbabwe representative, Shelley Lasker said the food supplement
was not only full of nutrients, but has also been formulated to
improve the ability of the body to digest and break down food, ensuring
full benefits in one’s entire diet.
“E’Pap
is a great tool for companies with social responsibility programmes,”
she said.
The supplement
comes at a time when over two million people in Zimbabwe are in
need of food assistance following poor yields in most parts of the
country, according to
the World Food Programme (WFP).
Hunger is most
prevalent in provinces such as Manicaland, Masvingo, Midlands and
Matabeleland region.
Statistics from
the Ministry of Health and Child Welfare indicate that about 12
000 children under the age of five die in the country yearly as
a result of malnutrition.
Econocom Foods
chief executive officer, Basil Kransdorff, a food expert from South
Africa, said poverty has seen the emergence of a “sterile
mono diet” focussed on maize meal, which does not address
the daily nutrient requirements.
This, he said,
was now called “hidden hunger” which e’Pap sought
to address.
Hidden hunger
is not the kind that comes from lack of food, but is a long-term,
chronic lack of vitamins and minerals.
“Eating
commercially farmed and over-processed sterile food may make us
feel full, but our bodies will not ever be nutrient replete. Nutrient
repleteness plays a vital role in helping human beings become functional,”
Kransdorff said.
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