BEP Technical Advisory Group

The Balanced Energy and Protein Dietary Supplementation Technical Advisory Group (BEP TAG) is an interdisciplinary group of experts in nutrition, maternal health, and public health. Hosted by the Healthy Mothers Healthy Babies Consortium (HMHB), the BEP TAG aims to review and synthesize evidence, address knowledge gaps, drive innovative research on balanced energy and protein (BEP) dietary supplementation, and provide high-fidelity guidance to governments, non-governmental organizations (NGOs), foundations, multilateral organizations, and the private sector.

The BEP TAG was created in 2024 to address undernutrition among pregnant women and its consequences for their babies. BEP dietary supplementation has shown promising potential to mitigate the risks of low birth weight, small for gestational age babies, and stillbirths.

BEP intervention is delivered in many forms, such as ready-to-use products,  fortified cereals or flours with added protein, and locally prepared foods or snacks. The lack of a universally accepted formulation for BEP dietary supplementation inspired the creation of a dedicated TAG. This collaborative effort seeks to synthesize scientific evidence to support the use of BEP dietary supplementation for pregnant women residing in undernourished populations, recommended by the World Health Organization (WHO), particularly in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs). 

The BEP-TAG works in collaboration with the WHO BEP Expert Group to review existing scientific evidence and drive consensus to address the following:    

• Nutritional composition of BEP dietary supplementation (e.g., review or revise the expert consensus on BEP nutrient composition and product considerations).    
• Targeted approaches for BEP dietary supplementation (e.g., layout pros and cons of individual vs. blanket or group targeting, combined with other supplements).   
• Delivery models for BEP dietary supplementation (e.g., develop guidance on product storage, frontline workers, delivery cost, etc., to platforms providing routine antenatal care). It is important to ensure that the chosen delivery model is efficient, cost-effective, and aligned with the preferences and constraints of the target population.  
• Other opportunities for BEP dietary supplementation to reduce the triple burden of malnutrition and non-communicable diseases.   

Seth Adu-Afarwuah – University of Ghana, Ghana

Karen M. Hariharan – Clinton Health Access Initiative (CHAI), USA

Tsering Lama – Nepal Nutrition Intervention Project-Sarlahi, Nepal