The Battle Against Childhood Malnutrition – Project Peanut Butter’s Mission

Did you know malnutrition kills 3-5 million children per year? That’s roughly half of all child related deaths worldwide. Project Peanut Butter is a non-profit organization committed to helping children recover from severe malnutrition.

What is Project Peanut Butter?

Project Peanut Butter (PPB) is a non-profit organization founded in 2004 by Dr. Mark Manary. The organization focuses on the treatment of childhood malnutrition, primarily in Africa. Project Peanut Butter produces Ready-to-Use Therapeutic Food (RUTF) manufactured from local ingredients, in production facilities that are operated by local staff.

Originally founded in Malawi, today PPB has expanded to Sierra Leone and has helped treat over 100,000 malnourished children. PPB works closely with the Clinton Foundation, Doctors Without Borders, and UNICEF, among many other international aid organizations and government agencies to aid those suffering from severe malnutrition.

The Science Behind Project Peanut Butter

Project Peanut Butter produces RUTFs which consist of milk powder, roasted peanuts, vegetable oil, sugar, vitamins, and minerals. Research has showed that 95% of children using this formula are recovering and even 12 months after treatment. Furthermore, 96% are still well nourished, giving the children a buffer of nutrients reserves to help them in the future.

PPB purchased the Sartorius Biohit Picus^® and Biohit Optifit Racked Tips from Pipette.com, The Picus^® is known as the lightest electronic pipette on the market. According to PPB, they purchased the Picus^® from Pipette.com because it was an electronic pipette that operates on the power supply available in Africa. PPB utilized the 50-100 uL Biohit Picus single channel electronic pipette, in their small internal lab to perform basic microbiological and aflatoxin analysis. For example, they use a 3M Petrifilm™ to do coliform, E. Coli, yeast & mold, and enterobacteriaceae testing. These test were performed to ensure that the peanuts meet strict food safety and quality standards.

The Goals for Project Peanut Butter

The long term goal for Project Peanut Butter is for the local people to run the program on their own. They also hope to expand to other countries and continue to help children suffering from malnutrition. Through PPB’s work, thousands of malnourished children have been successfully treated. To find out more about the extraordinary efforts of Project Peanut Butter, the science employed, and how you can make a donation, please visit www.projectpeanutbutter.org.

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