Barrington Woman "Stars" in Backyard Campaign

In 2007, Navyn Salem, a stay-at-home mother of four from Barrington, set out with a clear, yet ambitious goal to end the crisis of malnutrition for over 200 million children around the world. Her approach was simple: increase access to inexpensive, peanut-based nutritious foods in developing countries.

Over the years, Salem has used her deep determination to turn this goal into a reality. Today, Edesia, the company she founded, employs more than 60 people here and has reached over 1.7 million children worldwide.

Her compelling story has made Salem one of the stars of a statewide marketing campaign that celebrates Rhode Island and highlights the state’s people, organizations, businesses and industries.

“Rhode Island: It’s All In Our Backyard” features TV and radio ads, billboards, web banner and tile ads and posters. Launched by the Rhode Island Foundation, “Backyard” also encourages Rhode Islanders to share their own success stories on the campaign's web site at ourbackyardri.com and Twitter using the hashtag #ourbackyardri.

“This is an internal marketing campaign designed to change the way Rhode Islanders talk about their state. There are plenty of successes to feel good about right here in our own backyard -- global industry and cutting-edge innovation, thriving entrepreneurship, world-class universities and a vibrant arts and culture scene," said Neil Steinberg, the Foundation's president and CEO. 

Edesia produces four different ready-to-use foods (RUFs), as a licensee and partner of Nutriset in France, designed to address the many stages of childhood malnutrition: Plumpy’Nut, Plumpy’Sup, Plumpy’Doz and Nutributter.

“Edesia started about six years ago because I had an interest in children, I had a business background and my father is from Tanzania. I wanted to find some way to connect all of those dots. I realized there was a large problem with malnutrition and decided to set up a factory that would not only create jobs, use local resources, but solve a global health problem in Tanzania. The products that we make here at Edesia are really quite revolutionary. They treat the whole range of malnutrition from severe to moderate to prevention,” Salem explains.

The RUFs come packaged in small silver foil sachets and do not need preparation or refrigeration and have a shelf life of two years. These products are delivered to children for free through distribution partners such as UNICEF and the World Food Programme, who, as customers, purchase them from Edesia at cost.

"Since opening, we’ve shipped to 34 countries as far away as Pakistan and as close to home as Haiti. We’re really proud to have an impact in that many countries around the world and to see our boxes that say ‘Providence, Rhode Island’ on the bottom of them in a little store closet in Ethiopia makes me feel proud of that ‘Rhode Island’ mark.’

"Rhode Island is the perfect place to have my company. I love the community here. I will be here probably for the rest of my life. So, this is really what I call home. It was important for me to have our business here in my home state,” she says.

Edesia also makes products for organizations working in emergency situations. In recognition that treating the most severe cases is not a permanent solution, the company also supplies products for and is an advocate of preventative approaches.

In addition to its manufacturing activities, Edesia does public outreach to raise the profile of childhood malnutrition in the United States. Each year, Edesia welcomes on average 30 visitors a month for educational tours through its Providence factory.

In 2013, Salem continues to keep Edesia’s focus on innovation and advocacy to ensure that this important issue remains high on the world’s agenda. “I will not rest until we have made measurable and significant impact,” she says.