Honduras and NSRL: A History of Partnership and Friendship

Hola from Honduras.

Courtney and I are happy to be back in San Pedro Sula, Honduras. We were welcomed with the classic heat and humidity, but also with the wonderful hospitality of our partners and friends here.

Today we met with our local consultant, Carlos Coello, to discuss our programs in Honduras.

NSRL, partnered with the American Soybean Association's World Initiative for Soy in Human Health (WISHH), has been creating soy-based solutions for malnutrition in Honduras for over six years. Our projects in the country include early childhood nutrition, school nutrition, cooking with soy, and micro-enterprise development.

FortiSoy is a nutrient-dense complementary feeding supplement designed to provide protein and micronutrients for infants and children in Honduras. It is a shelf-stable and ready-to-mix powder that can easily be added to beverages and food. The powder is made from defatted soy flour, sweet whey, and non-dairy creamer.

NSRL is also working to incorporate soy protein into school lunches. Soy protein is an economical way to increase the protein intake of school children, and it can easily be added to delicious local recipes that kids already love. Providing a lunch at school supports healthy learning and encourages increased school enrollment and attendance.

NSRL provides cooking classes and recipes for teachers and parents of Honduran children, showing them how easy it is to add soy to local recipes. The addition of soy provides extra nutrition to meals, but the flavor of the dishes does not change.

NSRL also helps with soy dairy micro-enterprise development in Honduras. We provide training for the SoyCow-the machine used to make soymilk. These micro-enterprises can partner with local NGOs to help fight malnutrition in their own communities.

It is rewarding to see the impact that is being achieved with the efforts that have been created in Honduras, and we are excited about future work to provide soy-based nutrition solutions in new and innovative ways.

Warmest regards,

Bridget