Small and Medium Enterprises’ Perspectives on Food Fortification Amid the Growing Burden of Malnutrition

Monroy-Gomez, Jimena; Ferraboschi, Chiara; Zutphen, Kesso Gabrielle van; Gavin-Smith, Breda; Amanquah, Daniel; Kraemer, Klaus

doi:10.3390/nu14183837

Cited by 7 publications

(5 citation statements)

References 59 publications

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“…A review of small and medium enterprises (SMEs) (defined in the review as a firm with a maximum of 250 employees) in low- and middle-income countries showcased some examples of SMEs involved in food fortification. 32 The key challenges that the review outlined for SMEs included information gaps (hindering SMEs to develop micronutrient context-specific foods); funding (access to sustainable financing); technical support (gaps in production, nutrition, and business plans); ability to comply with regulations, capacity building and scale-up, and finding business models that are scale-appropriate and market-context-appropriate.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Firm-Level and Public-Sector Costs Make Small-Scale Maize Flour Fortification Challenging in Uganda

Vosti,

Baker,

Moorthy

et al. 2024

Food Nutr Bull

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Background: Maize flour in Uganda is milled by hundreds of enterprises, mostly small- (5-20 metric tons [MT]/day) and micro-scale (<5 MT/day) mills or firms. A mandatory maize flour fortification program exists for medium-scale mills (>20 MT/day) and policymakers are considering including smaller-scale millers. Objective: We estimated the private and public costs of maize flour fortification at different scales and explored their implications for extending the mandatory fortification to include smaller-scale mills. Methods: We used secondary data on the structure of the maize flour market and primary data on milling and fortification costs to estimate mill and regulatory costs at 3 scales of flour production: micro, small, and medium. Results: For micro-, small-, and medium-size operations, respectively, operational costs of fortification were US$13, US$9, and US$7 per metric ton (MT) of maize flour, which represented 20%, 16%, and 16% of annual operating costs, and the ratio of fortification equipment cost to mill equipment costs was higher for micro-scale mills (2.7) than for small- (0.38) and medium-scale (0.54) maize mills. Governmental regulatory costs rise if smaller-scale mills are included due to the increased number of facility inspections. Conclusions: Fortification and regulatory costs increase as production scale decreases. Up-front capital costs of fortification would be daunting for micro- and small-scale mills. Medium-scale mills, which supply social protection programs, might be able to manage fortification costs and other challenges. Decision-makers should consider all costs and cost burdens, and the realities of enforcement capabilities before expanding fortification programs to include smaller-scale operations.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Firm-Level and Public-Sector Costs Make Small-Scale Maize Flour Fortification Challenging in Uganda

Vosti,

Baker,

Moorthy

et al. 2024

Food Nutr Bull

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“…For example, regional accessibility, supply chains, consumer preferences, and food safety impact consumption patterns of plant-based food sources in specific regions [ 61 ]. A context-specific approach to nutritional recommendations may identify the need for solutions that include fortification or demand generation in a particular region or for a particular subgroup [ 62 ].…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Precision Nutrition Opportunities to Help Mitigate Nutrition and Health Challenges in Low- and Middle-Income Countries: An Expert Opinion Survey

Bedsaul-Fryer,

van Zutphen-Küffer,

Monroy-Gomez

et al. 2023

Nutrients

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Precision nutrition involves several data collection methods and tools that aim to better inform nutritional recommendations and improve dietary intake, nutritional status, and health outcomes. While the benefits of collecting precise data and designing well-informed interventions are vast, it is presently unclear whether precision nutrition is a relevant approach for tackling nutrition challenges facing populations in low- and middle-income countries (LMIC), considering infrastructure, affordability, and accessibility of approaches. The Swiss Food & Nutrition Valley (SFNV) Precision Nutrition for LMIC project working group assessed the relevance of precision nutrition for LMIC by first conducting an expert opinion survey and then hosting a workshop with nutrition leaders who live or work in LMIC. The experts were interviewed to discuss four topics: nutritional problems, current solutions, precision nutrition, and collaboration. Furthermore, the SFNV Precision Nutrition for LMIC Virtual Workshop gathered a wider group of nutrition leaders to further discuss precision nutrition relevance and opportunities. Our study revealed that precision public health nutrition, which has a clear focus on the stratification of at-risk groups, may offer relevant support for nutrition and health issues in LMIC. However, funding, affordability, resources, awareness, training, suitable tools, and safety are essential prerequisites for implementation and to equitably address nutrition challenges in low-resource communities.

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“…The market position plays a central role in steering changes within SMEs. The key factor determining success or hindrance is executing strategies primarily guided by customer needs (Monroy-Gomez et al, 2022).…”

Section: Background Of Studymentioning

confidence: 99%

The mediating role of accounting information systems in small and medium enterprise strategies and organizational performance in Iraq

Kareem,

Alsheikh,

Alsheikh

et al. 2024

Humanit Soc Sci Commun

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This paper examined accounting information systems (AIS) as a mediator between small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) strategies, including (finance source, administrative innovation, organizational culture, developing capabilities levels of SMEs, information source, development of business managers, and technological innovation) and organizational performance. In this quantitative study, 450 self-administered questionnaires were distributed to the managers and owners of SMEs using purposive sampling. Data were analyzed using the structural equation modeling (SEM) method via SmartPLS3 Software. The study offers empirical findings on the importance of AIS as a mediator, considers various factors, and provides clear strategies for better work performance. The study confirmed that the SMEs’ strategy and the use of an AIS significantly and positively affected SMEs’ organizational performance, while AIS use partially mediated between SMEs’ strategy and organizational performance. This result confirms that an SME can enhance its performance by using AIS. AIS can support organizational performance through an SME strategy, avoid human errors, provide cost-against-time savings, and assist in timely internal decision-making considering long-term benefits. However, the results may not reflect the actual performance situation and cannot be generalized to all provinces or other countries because environments differ.

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Small and Medium Enterprises’ Perspectives on Food Fortification Amid the Growing Burden of Malnutrition

Cited by 7 publications

References 59 publications

Firm-Level and Public-Sector Costs Make Small-Scale Maize Flour Fortification Challenging in Uganda

Firm-Level and Public-Sector Costs Make Small-Scale Maize Flour Fortification Challenging in Uganda

Precision Nutrition Opportunities to Help Mitigate Nutrition and Health Challenges in Low- and Middle-Income Countries: An Expert Opinion Survey

The mediating role of accounting information systems in small and medium enterprise strategies and organizational performance in Iraq

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