PLUMPY NUT (RUTF)SUPPLY CHAIN ANALYSIS

Jayashankar M. Swaminathan

Joint work with Wendell Gilland, Vidya Mani, Corrina Moucheraud-Vickery and Anthony So

Photo: Brandon Bannon

A Joint Statement by the World Health Organization, the World Food Programme, the United Nations System Standing Committee on Nutrition and the United Nations Children’s Fund (2007). Community-based Management ofSevere Acute Malnutrition.

• The recent adoption of guidelines from WHO, WFP, UNSCN and UNICEF that endorse the introduction of these new products to reach severely malnourished children through community-based treatment approaches,• Rising food and fuel prices worldwide that are increasing food insecurity and, consequently, rates of malnutrition; and• A myriad of local circumstances—in Kenya and Somalia these include flooding, droughts and civil unrest—that affect rates of malnutrition.

Increasing Demand for RUTF (Plumpy Nut)

Table: Steve Jarrett, UNICEF. 2008.

Increasing UNICEF demand for RUTF

Supply Chain of RUTF

UNICEF CO

UNICEF ESARO

UNICEF SD

NGO partners

Ministry of Health

RUTF producer

Kuehne + Nagel

Freight forwarder

Donors

PLAN

PROCURE

PRODUCE

time

Kenya

Somalia

DELIVER

Children

Malnourished children

Flow of information

Flow of RUTF

Flow of funds

Kenya-specific processes in greenSomalia-specific processes in purple

Challenge 1: Inefficient flow of information and funds forces supply chain to be reactive, not proactive Forecasts are inconsistent in methods and

quality Flow of money does not necessarily coincide

with need Causes ordering of RUTF to be uneven

Supply Chain Challenges

Challenge 2: Long lead times and high variability across the supply chain Low production capacity, spikes in ordering

and lumpy demand make it hard to achieve consistent lead times

Margin of error compounds at each delivery point in supply chain, making it difficult to project accurate lead times

High variability leads to low trust in the supply chain

Supply Chain Challenges

Supply Chain Challenges

Challenge 3: Mismatch between ordering amount and actual need Amounts ordered inconsistent with number of

children served Scarcity of supply, uncertainty in targeted

arrival dates and limited fund flow make it hard for COs to rely on the supply chain May lead to orders being inflated.

Challenge 4: Information systems and flows could be improved Backward information flow, including

information on handover and feedback on quality, is either unavailable or nontransparent

Exception handling capabilities not present Information may be inconsistent

Supply Chain Challenges

Supply Chain Challenges

Challenge 5: The future of RUTF demand is uncertain RUTF demand will vary depending on level

of long term success and with short term spikes in demand due to local crises.

Current and Future Work

Recommendation for changes in the current supply chain

Articulation guidelines and supply chain analysis

UNICEF Plumpy Nut Supply Chain case Analytical models for strategies and

insights