Sanku: Ending Hidden Hunger

Sanku

Sanku: Ending Hidden Hunger

Ending malnutrition for 100 million people by guaranteeing that every meal, for every mother and child, contains lifesaving nutrients forever.

Dar es Salaam, Tanzania

TZA

Hybrid of for-profit and nonprofit

Micronutrient deficiency, also known as hidden hunger, affects one in five Africans, particularly in low-income regions, where diets often comprise calorie-dense but nutrient-poor staples such as maize and wheat flour, leading to devastating but preventable health issues. In Tanzania, 32% of children under five are stunted and 58% are anaemic. In Kenya, 19.4% of children are stunted, 62% are Vitamin A deficient, and 68% of pregnant mothers are zinc deficient. Ethiopia faces similar challenges, with 39% of children stunted and 34% of women zinc deficient. Further, every day, 130 children in Tanzania and 740 in Ethiopia lose their lives, and in Kenya, 1 in 26 children won't reach their first birthday—largely due to preventable diseases. Food fortification is one of the most effective, safe, and cost-efficient interventions for addressing malnutrition, with nearly a century of proven success. However, typical initiatives in Africa often fail to reach the most vulnerable populations and rural poor, who lack access to centrally processed foods. The urgent need to close the nutrition gap in Africa requires a solution that delivers fortified food to the hardest-to-reach and most vulnerable populations. Sanku exists to fulfil this critical need.

Sanku is addressing micronutrient deficiencies by ensuring that essential nutrients needed for good health, growth, and development are added to the flour consumed by the majority of Africa’s population. In Eastern Africa, where maize is a staple food, Sanku partners with small and medium-scale mills to pioneer an innovative and sustainable food fortification approach, transforming food systems to end malnutrition forever. Central to this effort is Sanku’s IoT-enabled Dosifier, an award-winning, fully automated “nutrient-dosing” machine which is installed on small mills that serve the majority of the population, including the most vulnerable. The device precisely doses the correct amount of premix—a blend of essential vitamins and minerals — into each flour bag, ensuring vital nutrients like iron, zinc, folic acid, and Vitamins A and B12 are evenly distributed without altering taste or quality. Unlike any other fortification device, the Sanku Dosifier is IoT-enabled and equipped with remote-monitoring capabilities. This means that it can transmit production and technical data in real-time, providing us with an effective and accurate way to monitor fortification activities for hundreds of small mills in a highly decentralized sector. Currently, Sanku is reaching 10 million people with fortified food across, Tanzania, Kenya and Ethiopia.

Sanku reaches some of the most vulnerable and underserved populations in Eastern Africa, including women, girls, students, and refugees. In the communities we serve, approximately 95% of the population survives on less than $5 per day and lack access to the essential food and nutrients required for sound health, and growth. In Tanzania, Kenya, and Ethiopia, Sanku is currently reach over 20 million people up from the 10 million people we were reaching in 2024. However, malnutrition still persists as a silent crisis. The heavy reliance on nutrient-poor maize and wheat flour as a dietary staple continues to fuel stunted growth, maternal and infant mortality, and lost educational and economic opportunities, perpetuating cycles of poverty and poor health across generations. We also work directly with schools to ensure children receive fortified flour that supports their health and learning. Through our flagship school-feeding program in Tanzania’s Lake Zone Region—delivered in partnership with local millers, Global Alliance for Improved Nutrition (GAIN), and funded by the Waterloo Foundation—we’ve reached 495 schools and over 225,000 students. In partnership with the World Food Program, we also support refugee families displaced by conflict providing them with access to fortified flour.