Consultant – Industrial Feasibility for Tom Brown Reformulation

The consultant will lead the definition of industrial feasibility constraints for reformulated Tom Brown and translate those constraints into practical decisions for formulation, production, and scale-up. <4>Define industrial feasibility constraints and production pathway (Primary Deliverable)

Define the feasible production pathways for reformulated Tom Brown, including roasting, milling, blending, extrusion, or hybrid approaches.

Identify the key constraints that should shape formulation and production decisions, including machinery, batch size, throughput, process control, ingredient handling, oil content, aflatoxin risk, rancidity, moisture control, shelf stability, and production consistency.

Clarify which constraints are absolute red lines, which can be solved through adaptation, and which should be tested during prototype or pilot production.

Translate constraints into a usable feasibility framework

a. Produce a clear decision framework that helps IRC understand:

What can be produced locally now

What could be produced with modest adaptation

What would require larger investment or a different production partner

What is not feasible under current conditions

Key trade-offs between cost, manufacturability, stability, quality, and complexity <4>The framework should be practical enough to guide formulation selection, partner engagement, and next-stage pilot planning. <4>Assess local production pathways and facility types

Map the relevant local production economy, including hammer mills, processors, packaging actors, ingredient suppliers, and larger production partners.

Assess which facility types could plausibly support early formulation testing, pilot production, or larger-scale production.

Identify where IRC may be able to contract with existing local facilities, where technical upgrades would be required, and where production may need to ladder up to more capable partners.

Identify QA infrastructure gaps at each candidate facility against institutional procurement expectations (e.g., UNICEF Supply Division, WFP). <4>Define equipment, process, and QA/QC requirements

Identify the machinery, process steps, utilities, labor, and facility conditions required to produce reformulated Tom Brown safely and consistently.

Define minimum QA/QC and food safety requirements for pilot production and scale-up, including examples such as raw material acceptance criteria, aflatoxin controls, moisture thresholds, heavy metal limits, microbiological testing, traceability, batch records, and finished product testing.

Identify where third-party lab testing, external QA support, or additional technical oversight would be required. <4>Determine what procurement-grade evidence should be collected in prototype production

Define the raw material, in-process, finished product, and stability evidence to be collected during prototype production to support future supplier qualification (e.g., UNICEF SD, WFP).

Identify which evidence categories require accredited third-party testing and where in-house QA can suffice.

Initiate accelerated stability testing on prototype lots so the data is in motion, even if it cannot be completed within the consultancy window. <4>Support formulation decisions

Work with the Nutrition Formulation Consultant to assess 3–4 candidate Tom Brown reformulations against production realities.

For each option, identify risks related to processing complexity, ingredient reliability, quality control, shelf stability, packaging, cost, consistency, and scalability.

Recommend practical changes to improve manufacturability while preserving the nutritional intent of the product.

Coordinate with the Nutrition Formulation Consultant through a joint kickoff and a mid-point sync.

Co-author a short Joint Reconciliation Note capturing where production realities and nutrition targets converged or diverged. <4>Assess packaging, storage, cost, capacity, and scale

Define practical packaging and storage requirements for Northeast Nigeria conditions, including heat, humidity, rough transport, multi-handling, warehouse conditions, and shelf-life protection.

Develop a high-level view of production cost drivers, capacity constraints, bottlenecks, and scale-up requirements, including ingredients, premix where relevant, processing, packaging, testing, labor, storage, and likely facility adaptations. <4>Deliverables: Industrial Feasibility Constraints and Production Pathway — Primary Deliverable

Activity-based, linked to delivery of defined outputs, within an overall budget of x <4>Requirements:

The consultant should bring: Experience in food processing, especially milling, roasting, blending, extrusion, fortified blended foods, or shelf-stable foods

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