Participants in the MFK Workshop in Haiti had the opportunity to visit farms where MFK’s agricultural programs were being implemented. 

In Haiti, local peanut farmers have started supplying peanuts for the manufacture of ready-to-use therapeutic foods (RUTFs), which are nutrition-dense and contribute to reversing childhood malnutrition and supporting HIV-infected individuals.  Farmers are able to meet demand because they have lowered production costs and improved their crop quality based on research conducted by the Peanut CRSP.

On-going collaboration between the Peanut CRSP and Meds & Food for Kids (MFK), along with Haiti’s Ministry of Agriculture, the Christian University of Northern Haiti, and other international partners is yielding benefits for Haitian farmers.  Rural Haitian peanut farmers working with the Peanut CRSP and MFK are experiencing an average increase in profitability of $645 per average production area per harvest.  This is compared to a profit margin of $113 on farms using traditional methods. Evidence suggests there is potential for the profit margin to increase even further as improved peanut varieties become more widely available. Moreover as demand for RUTF expands in Haiti, the demand for peanuts will continue to rise making it an attractive opportunity for farmers.

MFK held a training workshop in Limbe in Northern Haiti on June 19-20. It showcased the successes of this agricultural program and to discuss the potential to scale up their agricultural model.  The workshop highlighted the model of peanut production used by MFK’s program and its goals of increasing the availability of improved peanut varieties to benefit Haitian farmers as well as to increase the availability of high quality, fairly priced peanuts for use in the production of peanut based RUTFs. The workshop was hosted by the Georgia-based nonprofit League of Hope and brought together organizations working in the peanut sector to facilitate dialogue about the future of peanut farming in Haiti as well as share best practices and set the stage for future collaborations.

To learn more about MFK’s agricultural program click here.