"Edesia focuses on children 6-24 months and even up to five years because that’s the most critical window where you can really have an impact." Maria Kasparian - Director of Operations

Headquartered in Providence, Rhode Island, Edesia is a non-profit producer of Ready-to-Use Foods (RUFs) that have revolutionized the treatment and prevention of malnutrition in the developing world. Above and beyond production, Edesia’s role is to foster research for the development of new nutritional solutions and to support expansion of production capacities in developing countries.

Plumpy’Nut^® is a ready-to-use therapeutic food, endorsed by the World Health Organization and UNICEF, and is proven to treat severe acute malnutrition with astounding success rates. It is an energy-dense paste made with peanuts, milk powder, sugar, vegetable oils, and a fortified vitamin and mineral mixture.

Plumpy'Nut^® is revolutionary because it does not need to be refrigerated or mixed with water – two things not readily available in the developing world.  It allows for malnutrition to be treated at home by the caregiver instead of in a costly hospital stay and saves lives as if it were an essential medicine. In 4-10 weeks, a child can be transformed from near death to certain survival. With its 2-year shelf life, this simple solution can reach even the most remote areas. In times of great natural and human disasters, RUFs can effectively and efficiently fulfill caloric and micronutrient needs to the most vulnerable. In recent times, they have helped fill emergency needs in earthquake-ravaged Haiti, drought-stricken Niger, flood-affected Pakistan, and famine-stricken Horn of Africa.

Apart from Plumpy’Nut^®, Edesia also produces Plumpy'Sup^®, Plumpy’Doz^®and Nutributter^® all products designed for young children. If children are reached during this critical window, they will be healthier for the rest of their lives. If missed, the intellectual and physical damage is often irreversible.

Through important customers like World Food Programme, grant and research partners like USAID and FANTA-2, and the donor community, together we can make sure that food and nutrition is a basic human right.