Accelerating Development of Innovative, Exceptionally Low-Cost Maternal and Child Nutrient Ingredients and Products

Before applying, applicants should familiarize themselves with the supporting documents for this Grand Challenge, including the terms and conditions of the Gates Foundation, the Rules and Guidelines, Application Instructions, and Frequently Asked Questions.

If you are planning to apply to this RFP, we will be hosting a dedicated webinar on November 12, from 7:00 to 8:00 AM Pacific Time. This session will provide a comprehensive overview of the RFP details and an opportunity to have your questions answered. To participate in the webinar, please register and submit your questions in advance. If you cannot attend live, the webinar will be recorded and available on this challenge page after the session.

This is a call for transformative innovation. We seek solutions that ensure every mother and child – regardless of where they live – can access the essential nutrients to survive and thrive.

Background

Malnutrition remains one of the most urgent and pervasive threats to maternal, newborn, and child health in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs). It contributes to nearly half of all under-five child deaths and is a significant driver of maternal and child morbidity and mortality. During the first 1,000 days of a child's life (from conception to a child's second birthday), nutritional deficiencies can cause irreversible physical and cognitive impairments, limiting educational attainment, economic productivity, and lifelong health. In LMICs, where poverty, limited health services, and food insecurity intersect, the burden of malnutrition disproportionately affects the most vulnerable populations, exacerbating inequities and hindering progress toward global development goals.

Targeted interventions that improve maternal nutrition before and during pregnancy are essential for breaking this cycle.

Despite decades of evidence demonstrating the importance of adequate intakes and effectiveness of nutrition interventions, many solutions are inaccessible in LMICs due to high costs of nutrients and final products.

The nutrients we are particularly interested in are calcium, choline, and omega-3 long chain polyunsaturated fatty acids (specifically docosahexaenoic acid – DHA).

Calcium supplementation has been recommended by the World Health Organization (WHO) (1.5–2.0 g elemental calcium daily in populations with low dietary intake) since 2011 as a strategy to reduce the risk of preeclampsia in pregnant women. In two recent randomized trials in India and Tanzania, a low-dose regimen (500 mg elemental calcium daily) was found to be noninferior to the high-dose regimen (1,500 mg) in reducing preeclampsia incidence, supporting the possibility of a simpler, lower-dose strategy.

Choline is an essential nutrient that supports fetal brain development, memory function, and placental health, with increasing evidence linking adequate maternal intake to improved child neurocognitive outcomes. The U.S. National Academies of Medicine, the American Academy of Pediatrics, and the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) all recommend adequate intakes (450–480 mg/day), yet studies consistently show that most pregnant women consume less than recommended, making insufficiency highly prevalent.

DHA supports fetal brain, eye, and nervous system development. A Cochrane meta-analysis found that omega-3 supplementation including DHA in pregnancy reduces the risk of preterm birth (before 37 weeks and before 34 weeks). The WHO and the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) recommend ≥200 mg/day of DHA for pregnant and lactating women, while the EFSA advises 100–200 mg/day DHA in addition to regular omega-3 intake. This is consistent with recommendations from professional societies such as the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists and the International Society for the Study of Fatty Acids and Lipids. Despite this alignment across authorities, dietary surveys show that most pregnant women worldwide do not meet these targets, particularly in regions with low fish consumption.

The United Nations International Multiple Micronutrient Antenatal Preparation (UNIMMAP) is a standard formulation that provides a base reference for antenatal multiple micronutrient supplementation and is used in this call for proposals.

The Challenge

High input costs, complex production processes, and limited manufacturing capacity in LMICs keep the price of essential nutrient ingredients and products prohibitively high. As a result, millions of women and children cannot access proven, lifesaving interventions.

At the same time, there is a clear opportunity: innovations across the entire product lifecycle - raw material sourcing, ingredient formulation, manufacturing methods, and packaging - can dramatically lower costs while maintaining quality. Advances in biotechnology, materials science, food technology, and other industries provide models that could be adapted to nutrition.

We are not seeking incremental improvements. This call is for transformative, bold solutions that can reduce costs by at least 50% compared to current baselines, while maintaining or improving safety, efficacy, and user acceptability. We want to support the development and validation of scalable, sustainable strategies that make high-quality nutrient ingredients and products affordable for LMIC health systems and ensure equitable access for every mother and child.

Based on Latham BioPharm Group research, the commonly available pharmaceutical quality ingredients for the nutrients of interest are calcium carbonate, choline bitartrate, choline chloride, and algal DHA powder. The lowest prices reported are 2.1 USD/kg, 5.8 USD/kg, 1.2 USD/kg, and 52 USD/kg (30% purity) respectively. The target cost for exceptionally low-cost nutrient ingredients should be at least 50% below the lowest price identified.

Focus Areas

Applicants may propose projects under one of the following options:

Funding Level

Application budgets should be commensurate with the scope of work proposed. Indirect costs should be included in the budget and should not exceed 10-15% of the total award (subject to the Gates Foundation's indirect cost policy).

Eligibility

This initiative is open globally to nonprofit organizations, for-profit companies, international organizations, government agencies, and academic institutions. We invite innovators from nutrition, biotechnology, food technology, pharmaceuticals, and beyond to apply. Only individuals who are applying through a legally recognized corporate entity are eligible.

What We Are Looking For

Successful proposals will demonstrate bold thinking, technical rigor, and a pathway to scale. Specifically, we are seeking proposals that:

• Present transformative cost-reduction strategies, not incremental improvements, with a clear pathway to achieve ≥50% cost reduction.
• Provide specific steps and/or end-to-end solutions, including credible cost modeling at scale (e.g., 3 million regimens per year).
• Demonstrate technical feasibility with the ability to generate meaningful data within 12–18 months.
• Clearly outline team capabilities and expertise, with strong preference for collaborations involving LMIC partners.
• Include a justified budget, which will be reviewed for alignment with scope and deliverables.
• Consider and enable manufacturing in LMICs, ensuring cultural and dietary inclusivity (vegetarian, halal, kosher).
• Are informed by consumer research, addressing acceptability, usability, and adherence.

We encourage applicants to identify and build collaborations with organizations that bring complementary expertise. Where appropriate, the Foundation may facilitate connections among applicants working on related challenges.

We will not fund proposals that:

• Rely solely on price negotiation or procurement tactics (e.g., bulk purchasing).
• Offer only stepwise, incremental improvements with minimal cost impact.
• Focus on delivery models (e.g., distribution, supply chain tools, or market shaping) without product innovation.
• Address nutrients or products outside the defined scope.