Product overview
Ready-to-Use Foods (RUFs) – also called Lipid-based Nutrient Supplements or LNS – are highly fortified, oil-based nutrient dense pastes specifically designed for the treatment of malnutrition. They are made from varying combinations of grains, pulses and seeds, milk powder, sugar, oil, vitamins and minerals. They are pre-cooked and ready-to-eat straight from the pack. As they are oil-based, bacteria cannot grow in RUFs which can be stored safely for two years without the need for refrigeration. In a resource poor setting, these products are literally life-savers!
Ready-to-use foods fall into three main categories:
- Ready-to-Use Therapeutic Food (RUTF) – to treat severe acute malnutrition in children and adults.
- Ready-to-Use Supplementary Food (RUSF) – to treat moderate acute malnutrition in children and adults.
- Ready-to-Use Complementary Food (RUCF) – to prevent chronic malnutrition among young children (over 6 months to 24 months of age).
Note: Breastfeeding is recommended until at least 24 months (exclusive up to 6 months). All VALID Nutrition products are only for children over 6 months.
Dr Steve Collins reflects on the opportunities and problems associated with the USD$250 million contribution announced by Administrator, Samantha Power of USAID – a positive catalyst for change?
VALID commissioned and achieved peer-review of a professional report to quantify objectively the overall climate impact profile of the amino-acid enhanced, plant-based RUTF recipe. It has found that the overall global warming potential impacts of the plant-based RUTF recipe are 47%-52% less than the milk-peanut based recipe.
Dr Steve Collins gives a hugely informative and enlightened interview to ENN podcast while discussing his candid Reflections on the UN Global Action Plan on Wasting.