Ready-to-use therapeutic foods company commissioned in Kano

The President of Dangote Group of Companies, Alhaji Aliko Dangote, has on Tuesday described the newly commissioned Nutrik-Dansa Company in Kano State as a dream come true for Dangote Foundation in its bid to tackle malnutrition in Nigeria and Africa in general.

Dangote who made this known during the official commissioning of Nutrik-Dansa Company held in Kano disclosed that the company is an international partnership between the Dansa group and Nutriset group that will be producing Ready to Use Therapeutic Food (RUTF).

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RUTF is an energy-dense, mineral- and vitamin-enriched food that requires no preparation and is specifically designed to treat severe acute malnutrition (SAM). RUTF has a similar nutrient composition to F-100 therapeutic milk, which is used to treat SAM in hospital settings.

RUTF is soft and can be consumed easily by children from the age of 6 months. Because RUTF is not water-based, bacteria cannot grow in it and it can be used safely at home without refrigeration and in areas where hygiene conditions are not optimal.

He said the establishment of the company has been his late brother, Alhaji Sani Dangote’s dream and even though his late brother is not alive, his dream has become a reality.

He explained that the establishment of the company is dedicated to the fight against malnutrition in Nigeria.

Earlier in her welcome remark, Mrs Aziza Sani Dangote, said alarming statistics suggest that in Nigeria, about 14 million people, which is equivalent to 8.5% of the total population including pregnant and lactating women, are undernourished.

She said her late father had worked so hard to see that he had contributed to the reduction of the undernourished people in Nigeria.

Kano State governor, Dr Abdullahi Umar Ganduje, reaffirmed the state government’s commitment to work with the newly established multi billion naira company to fight malnutrition in the state.

Ganduje added that to show the government’s commitment, he had directed all the 44 local government areas of the state to obtain N2million worth of RUTF manufactured by Nutrik-Dansa each.