Heinz Micronutrient Campaign

Project Mei Li – China

According to the World Health Organization, micronutrient malnutrition is estimated to affect 57% of the people in South and East Asia. Of the 1.3 billion people in China, 83 million are children, age 4 or younger. That is why the Heinz Micronutrient Campaign team has designated China as a priority area of need, and is partnering with the Chinese government and non-governmental organizations to address this problem.

Nurture Mate™ micronutrients can be added to
everyday foods and do not alter their taste.
They help children in China like Mei Li (center)
grow up strong and healthy as part of a joint
effort between Heinz and the Chinese Ministry
of Health.

Because Chinese children, like 5-year-old Mei Li, are typically weaned on warm, liquid-based foods such as congee, Heinz nutritionists in China have developed Nurture Mate,™a heat-resistant and water-soluble product. Mei Li’s mother will be able to add Nurture Mate to the foods she normally feeds her daughter. Nurture Mate will be launched as part of the Project Mei Li Pilot Program, in 2007.

Heinz will work directly with the Chinese Ministry of Health, which initially sought out Heinz to assist with its battle against micronutrient malnutrition, and the National Center for Women and Children’s Health of the Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention in Beijing, which is leading the testing of Nurture Mate’s efficacy and effectiveness in China. All members of this public-private partnership share a common vision — the elimination of micronutrient malnutrition among children in China.

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