Kid Tested, Locavore Approved

By Austin Bailey

October 3, 2019

Last Updated: September 13, 2010

The New York Times and The Heifer Blog both chimed in recently about Plumpy'nut, a sweet, foil-wrapped nutritional supplement given to children in crisis situations who need quick energy and a nutrient boost. Great idea, right?

But food guru Marion Nestle was unimpressed by Plumpy'nut. In an interview with Heifer's World Ark magazine, she questioned the wisdom of loading kids up on convenience foods packaged in throw-away wrappers and manufactured far, far away.

We think Nestle would be a fan of Nourimanba, a Plumpy'nut alternative produced and distributed in Haiti by the nonprofit Partners in Health. Production of the peanut butter-based food boosts the local economy by employing local farmers to grow the nuts and local women to sort and process them. Instead of single-serving foil wrappers, the Nourimanba is packed into reusable plastic canisters. Learn more about Nourimanba and see photos of the children who have benefited from it here.