Like Nutriset, a French company, contributed to this

Around 19 million children under 5 everywhere in the world suffer from Severe acute malnutrition yearly. This life -threatening disease kills 400,000 of them – This is a baby every 10 seconds.

These numbers are amazing, especially because life -saving treatment has existed for nearly three many years: “therapeutic food ready. “”

Nutriset, a French companywas founded by Michel Lercanne. He was certainly one of two scientists who invented this product in 1996. A sticky peanut butter paste -brands -Nut, which is enriched with vitamins and minerals and is delivered to packages that don’t require cooling or preparation.

Members of the health professions were quickly convinced from his promise. What was harder to search out was make as many packages as possible while the prices are reduced. In 2008, therapeutic food producers reminiscent of Nutriset in the quantity of $ 60 for a box with 150 package-die number that’s required for the treatment of a severely malnourished child for the 6-8 weeks required for his or her recovery.

In a study we published within the Journal of Management Studies in October 2024We have explained how the international agencies, non -governmental organizations, activists and non -profit firms that were involved within the distribution of the product have solved public controversy concerning the use of Nutriset Patent and its non -profit business model.

In contrast to the expectations of activists and lots of humanitarian NGOs, this non-profit company managed to cut back its prices to 39 USD per box with plump packages until 2019 consistently lower As every non -profit or profit -oriented competitor, while they implement their patent rights.

We interviewed Jan Komrska, a pharmacist who then acted as a ready -to -use therapeutic food procurement manager at Unicef, the United Nations agency for kids. Tiddo von Schoen-Anngerer, a pediatrician who led this Access to pharmaceutical campaign A medical charity organization for doctors without limits; And Thomas Coualet, a manager of Nutriset. We have also examined documents which have been issued over the course of a decade to search out out why the weird approach of this company to guard mental property was so successful.

Help franchisees in countries with low incomes

Nutriset and Humanitarian organizations didn’t agree At the start, as you possibly can produce with the production of therapeutic foods.

Doctors first without limits the accused nutriset to have behaved like an amazing drug makerBefore the competition through aggressive enforcement of his patents to gather excessively high prices. The Non -governmental organization called for This nutriset enables every manufacturer to create its patented packages for this mental property without compensation.

Until 2012, Nutriset had modified the course. It was stopped producing almost the only real manufacturer of therapeutic foods, and as an alternative enabled licenses and franchisee partners. mainly in countries with low incomesto make the packages without having to pay for license fees. However, it was an exception for the United States. It allowed EvenPresent A non -profit organization is predicated on Rhode Islandto turn out to be a nutriset franchisee.

In addition, these smaller manufacturers provided seed financing and technical advice.

Nutriset continues to be the world's largest wonderful therapeutic food producer that now we have determined by our research. It is accountable for around 30% to 40% of world annual production, of greater than 90% in 2008.

There are another US manufacturers, reminiscent of Tabatchnick Fine FoodsBut they aren’t a nutriset partner.

Threaten legal steps

At the identical time, the corporate continued to take legal motion against potential competitors in industrialized countries who replicated their recipe without permission. Usually the frequency letters were sufficient.

Nutriset has implemented this technique to ward off the competition Large multinational firms This could try to ascertain their brands in recent markets and to achieve a foothold beforehand Flood them with imported ultra -proof foods. An enormous risk if this had occurred would have been Less breastfeeding for newborns And the disruption of local diets.

Nutriset's strategy of selectively opening access to its patent has made it possible to double the proportion of packages that it buys from manufacturers in the worldwide south.

Unicef, the world's largest buyer of therapeutic foods, bought lower than a 3rd of his stocks of those nations in 2011. Two thirds in 2022.

Nutriset's trust in local franchisees has contributed to creating over 1,000 jobs in hunger-controlled regions and strengthening the provision chain and reducing CO2 transport emissions, says Unicef.

The creative patent strategy of Nutriset helped its partner producers in countries with low incomes that include non -profit and profit -oriented firms, with large firms in industrialized countries as much as the time of its time Patent ran in 2018.

In this case, a non-profit company not only managed to lower its prices than its competitors, including non-profit organizations, but in addition his patent to support economic development in developing countries by protecting startup producers from international competition.

As a results of these successes, we found that non -state organizations ultimately not criticized the criticism of the French company Global prices for the ingredients of the packages.

In recognition of his contributions and innovation, Nutriset won the US patent and brand office Patents for Humanity Award in 2015.

Offer low cost, comfortable and effective treatment

One of the best benefits of therapeutic food is that oldsters or other supervisors may give their children at home or on the go. This is more convenient and cheaper than the choice: several months of the hospital stay wherein children receive one Nutrient -rich liquid called “Therapeutic milk. “”

Treatment at home works more often than not. More than 80% of youngsters who receive three each day food packages get well inside two months.

Serious deaths of malnutrition of acute acute food remain high 25% to 50% of the below Let yourself be treated with therapeutic therapeutic foods as a result of insufficient financing. The treatment programs are operated by governments, UNICEF and other international agencies and NGOs reminiscent of doctors without limits.

The financing role of USAID

The US government was about to 200 million US dollars in 2024 Through the US agency for international development Sufficient packages in therapeutic food to treat 3.9 million children. It's almost as much as Unicef, that treats About 5 million children yearly.

It is unclear whether the Trump administrationWhat tries to dismantle USAID will hire its financing of therapeutic foods that the US government has Bought exclusively from US manufacturers with Ingredients within the USA.

At a time when the Development aid flow From several Wealthy countries decreaseThe precedence set suggests that humanitarian organizations, by joining in with international agencies, governments and profit-oriented firms, can assist reduce the prices of saving life and at the identical time increase the food autonomy of the worldwide south.

However, financing for therapeutic foods and its distribution must come from somewhere, be it from governments, foundations or other donors.