FFI Receives $100,000 from Open Philanthropy Project

Grant is in response to FFI being named again as a GiveWell 'standout charity'

The Food Fortification Initiative (FFI) is pleased to announce the receipt of $100,000 from the Open Philanthropy Project in response to being named a GiveWell “standout charity” again this year.

GiveWell is a non-profit evaluator that conducts in-depth analyses to identify outstanding giving opportunities for donors. This is the third consecutive year that GiveWell has designated FFI as a standout charity, and the third year that the Open Philanthropy Project has donated to FFI.

The funds will facilitate FFI’s work in helping country leaders promote, plan, implement, and monitor wheat flour, maize flour, and rice fortification programs. FFI is the only global group that focuses on improving nutrition by fortifying these commonly consumed grains.

“We equip country leaders to sustain fortification programs without us,” said Scott J. Montgomery, FFI Director. “But engaging national leaders and ensuring their commitment to food fortification is a time-consuming process. We rely on the generous support from donors like the Open Philanthropy Project to make it possible.”

For many, nutrition can be a matter of life and death. Pregnant women with severe anemia are twice as likely to die during or shortly after pregnancy than non-anemic women. In addition, about 75% of children with brain and spine birth defects, called neural tube defects, die before their fifth birthday. Most of these birth defects could be prevented if mothers have sufficient intake of folic acid (vitamin B9).

For survivors, iron deficiency in childhood stunts cognitive development which hinders academic performance and future earnings potential. Birth defects often lead to life-long disability and enormous costs for a country’s healthcare systems. Consequently, fortifying grains has tremendous implications for individuals, entire populations, and a country’s economy.

A research paper published in this report period, using FFI data, credited fortification with preventing 50,270 brain and spine birth defects in one year for an average of 137 healthier babies a day. Yet this is likely only 18% of these birth defects that could be prevented globally through grain fortification.

The Open Philanthropy Project donation was made through the US National Foundation for the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Inc., a U.S.-based 501(c)(3) public charity which serves as FFI's grant administrator. Its federal tax identification Number is 58-2106707. It has a four-star rating on Charity Navigator.

More News