MoreMilk Project: Milk Safety and Child Nutrition Impacts of a Training Scheme for Dairy Vendors in Nairobi, Kenya

Summary

The objective of the MoreMilk trial is to assess the effect of a Training, Certification and Marketing intervention for milk vendors in the informal sector on the safety of the milk sold in the markets and on the nutrition of children in peri-urban areas of Kenya. The intervention is a training scheme for dairy vendors designed to improve the vendors' business skills and increase their capacity to handle milk hygienically and recognize good quality milk. It will also support vendors to adopt marketing strategies and pass on messages to their customers on the role of milk for nutrition and good food handling practices. The intervention consists of a 12hr face-to-face training, followed by quarterly visits where milk safety is tested and results are discussed with the participants. To assess the effect of this intervention on milk safety, and selected health and nutrition outcomes, the study will work with two groups of participants: dairy retailers, referred to as dairy vendors, operating in the informal sector and consumer households that purchase milk from recruited vendors. Dairy vendors will be randomly allocated to receiving the training at the beginning of the study (treatment group) or at the end of the study (control group). A baseline survey will be administered to participating vendors and households, and an endline survey will be conducted 12 months after the intervention in the same vendors and households. The vendor baseline and endline surveys will include questionnaire modules on operations, milk handling practices, and business performance. In addition, it will include a women's empowerment module to be administered to all vendors and their spouses (pro-WEAI tool). A sample of milk will also be collected to test the microbiological quality and composition of the milk. Vendors will be visited 2 additional times during the 12 months between intervention and endline, to monitor practices and business performance and to collect a milk sample to be tested for microbiological quality and milk composition. The baseline and endline surveys in households will assess milk and food expenditure, milk handling and consumption practices, and a 24hr dietary recall for the index child, as well as length/height and weight of the index child and his/her mother .

Conditions

• Food Safety
• Child Nutrition

Interventions

OTHER

Training, certification and marketing

The 12hr training will address the vendors (i) knowledge on hygienic handling of milk, preservation and low-cost methods for testing milk safety; (ii) business skills in record keeping, access and management of credit; (iii) milk marketing. On completion of the training and successfully passing an evaluation, vendors will be given a written certificate using a format suitable to be displayed in their premises (i.e. A4 poster, a hat or badge) indicating they have completed the training. The certification will not have legal value. Two quarterly unannounced visits will be conducted to collect a milk sample from the vendors and report back the results of microbiological quality. Vendors will have access to various milk marketing and communication items to be used in their daily operations. The materials will promote milk consumption through marketing focused on messages to consumers related to (i) good milk hygiene practices, (ii) good child nutrition practices, and (iii) household diets

Sponsors & Collaborators

• International Food Policy Research Institute

  collaborator OTHER

• Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation

  collaborator OTHER

• Department for International Development, United Kingdom

  collaborator OTHER_GOV

• The International Livestock Research Institute (ILRI)

  lead OTHER

Principal Investigators

• Silvia Alonso, PhD · The International Livestock Research Institute (ILRI)

Study Design

Allocation

RANDOMIZED

Purpose

OTHER

Masking

NONE

Model

PARALLEL

Eligibility

Min Age

12 Months

Sex

ALL

Healthy Volunteers

Yes

Timeline & Regulatory

Start

2019-10-28

Primary Completion

2020-01-31

Completion

2020-04-20

Countries

• Kenya

Study Locations