The non-profit group Vitamin Angels has responded to an urgent request from its in-country partner, Hope for Haiti, by shipping 1 million children’s multivitamins to those in need.

After the present crisis is averted, Vitamin Angels will be working to rebuild nutritional security in Haiti by focusing on long-term strategies for alleviating micronutrient deficiency.

“Having been in Haiti just a few months ago, and knowing the poor condition of the infrastructure before the earthquake, we’ve been immediately concerned about our in-country partners, how the children we are currently working with are doing and how the recent disaster will impact our long-term plans for Haiti,” noted Howard B. Schiffer, president of Vitamin Angels.

Vitamin Angels focuses on long-range nutritional security through distribution of vitamin A and multivitamins (through its flagship programs Operation 20/20 and Thrive to Five, respectively). Vitamin Angels continues to explore other nutritional interventions, including a new major initiative to explore home fortification of meals with micronutrient powders. The recent disaster only underscores the need to redouble efforts for what will certainly be a long-term rebuilding effort in Haiti.

“With news of the disaster in Haiti, Vitamin Angels is working to assess how our partner organizations have been impacted,” said Mr. Schiffer, “Hope for Haiti is already funneling relief supplies into Port-au-Prince, and we just learned that the Sister of Charity baby hospital I visited in October is relatively undamaged.”

Vitamin Angels policy is to continue to direct the donations from its U.S. partners to the immediate Haitian relief campaign while welcoming support for Vitamin Angels’ long-term rebuilding effort and to help replenish recently depleted inventories of children’s multiple vitamins.

Vitamin Angels is dedicated to reducing child mortality worldwide by advancing availability, access and use of essential micronutrients, especially vitamin A, to newborns, infants and children under five. In 2009, Vitamin Angels reached more than 11 million infants and children in 40 countries, including the U.S., with the vital nutrients they need as a foundation for good health.