The American Soybean Association’s World Initiative for Soy in Human Health program and the U.S. Department of Agriculture recently send the first shipment of
Soy flour to Afghanistan. Bill Wykes, a WISHH committee member explains the program….
“The American Soybean Association’s World Initiative for Soy and Human Health, or WISHH, and the United States Department of Agriculture recently sent the first shipment of what will eventually total 80 tons of soy flour to Afghanistan. I went to the port of Virginia to watch 3,500, 50# bags of soy flour loaded onto 20-foot containers headed to Afghanistan where it will deliver the benefits of high-protein soy to five-thousand women and their families.
This shipment was part of the USDA’s funded soybeans in agriculture Renewal in Afghanistan Project launched by WISHH earlier this year.”
Wykes explains the Soybeans in Agricultural Renewal of Afghanistan project aims to improve the nutritional situation for families in the undernourished population there….
“Afghanistan has some of the worst nutrition problems int h world. The World Food Program reports that over a third of the population there is under nourished, 50% of the children are malnourished, and the maternal mortality rate is among the highest in the world. Part of this project is to provide soy flour to five-thousand pregnant and nursing women. The 80 tons of soy flour that we’re shipping to Afghanistan will provide a daily ration of protein for 30,000 people, many of which are children, for four months this winter.”
The protein-rich soy flour can be easily combined with the local foods in Afghanistan….
“Defatted soy flour is 55% protein and be easily included in the local foods in Afghanistan. You can mix it in wheat flour or other cereals, bake it in bread, or make it into a porridge. By combining soy flour with foods the people already eat this project is providing the essential protein that is often missing from the diet.
The American Soybean Association’s World Initiative for Soy and Human Health believes that by helping people improve their diets and helping build the food systems that use soy, we are creating opportunities for everyone including our farmers and exporters here in the United States.”
As a farmer, Wykes believes the activities of ASA’s WISHH program are encouraging…..
“It’s always encouraging to me as a farmer to see how soybeans can benefit people world-wide and change people’s lives through better nutrition.”
|