Rolex Laureate Felix Brooks‐church has found a simple yet revolutionary way to combat one of the world’s deadliest crises through his non‐profit social enterprise Sanku

Rolex Awards Laureate Felix Brooks‐church has found a simple yet revolutionary way to combat one of the world’s deadliest crises. Through his non‐profit social enterprise Sanku, he is ensuring that millions of people across East Africa can access life‐saving nutrients in their daily bread

In a world of information overload and relentless social media noise, malnutrition rarely captures attention and makes the headlines, yet its toll is staggering. According to American social entrepreneur Felix Brooks‑church, around 8,000 children around the world under the age of five die daily from poor nutrition. Millions more suffer from stunted growth, and grow up with weakened immune systems and impaired cognitive development, affecting not only their health but also their ability to learn, thrive and contribute to society.

For Brooks‑church, a 2021 Rolex Awards Laureate, confronting this silent crisis is both a professional mission and a deeply personal calling. Backed by two decades of field experience, he co‑founded Sanku, a non‑profit enterprise dedicated to ending malnutrition in Africa by ensuring food fortification with vital vitamins and minerals, in 2013 and has since been leading this pursuit as CEO. His breakthrough lies in a small but ingenious machine known as the dosifier: a device that mixes precise doses of essential nutrients such as vitamin B12, iron and zinc into flour as it is being milled.

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Above Rolex Awards Laureate Felix Brooks‑church, co‑founder of non‑profit organisation Sanku

Rolex Awards Laureate Felix Brooks‑church, co‑founder of non‑profit organisation Sanku

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Recognising that local diets across Africa consist mainly of starchy flour, Sanku fortifies this staple food by installing dosifiers directly in the village mills that produce and sell the food most people eat daily. Its business model ensures that the enriched flour is available at local shops at no additional cost to millers or the families who buy it. “This is a dream come true,” says Brooks‑church. “When we install a dosifier and we see that powder come out, and [knowing that there are] those life‑saving nutrients in the flour; [seeing that flour get] packed, sold to a shop and [then being] sold to a mother—that’s the work I love.”

Scaling Up

The dosifier was first rolled out in Tanzania, where maize flour is a dietary cornerstone, around 2015. Since then, Sanku has grown rapidly. Today, with the support of Rolex through its Perpetual Planet Initiative, it operates across about 1,500 mills in Tanzania, Kenya and Ethiopia; employs 120 local residents; and reaches more than 25 million people with fortified flour.

A key factor in this success is infrastructure. In 2024, Sanku opened a nutrient premix blending factory in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania. This facility—the first of its kind in East Africa—produces the custom vitamin‑and‑mineral mixes needed to supply local mills. Previously, such premixes had to be imported, creating delays and raising costs. Now, they are readily available and affordable, with enough output to enrich 3.6 billion plates of food each year. A second factory is already underway in Ethiopia—where teff, maize and wheat are staple foods.

This expansion could prove transformational. Ethiopia’s population of more than 120 million relies heavily on flour produced in just 400 large‑scale mills, making fortification a scalable solution with enormous reach. “Being in Ethiopia is exciting because it’s a new opportunity,” says Brooks‑church. “Fortification is brand new here and the potential impact is huge.”

Above Sealed bags of premix are packed into cardboard boxes for distribution at the Sanku Nutrient Premix Blending Factory in Dar es Salaam in Tanzania

Sealed bags of premix are packed into cardboard boxes for distribution at the Sanku Nutrient Premix Blending Factory in Dar es Salaam in Tanzania

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From Cambodia to East Africa

Brooks‑church’s journey began far from East Africa. In his 20s, he volunteered in Cambodia, helping to reintegrate street children into society. He quickly realised that poor nutrition lay at the root of many of their struggles. “They were often sick. They had weak immune systems and lower IQs, as most children were lacking essential nutrients before the age of five,” he recalls. “The stomach might be full, but they’re starving from a lack of critical vitamins and minerals that one typically finds in a varied diet.”

That experience planted the seed for what would become Sanku. In the years that followed, Brooks‑church worked across Asia and Africa, observing the same pattern repeat itself: hunger was often not a question of quantity, but of quality. Staple foods provided calories, but lacked the micronutrients essential for healthy development.

Determined to find a solution, he began experimenting with small‑scale food‑fortification devices. The early prototypes were built in makeshift Himalayan workshops, refined through trial and error until he created a durable, reliable design suited for rural mills. Today’s upgraded dosifier is compact and robust, with smart sensors that, among other things, automatically refill its nutrient compartment and alert millers if the supply is running low. It is simple enough to be used in remote settings, yet sophisticated enough to guarantee precise dosing.

Above A woman stirring a pot of ugali (a maize‑based staple dish in many African countries)

A woman stirring a pot of ugali (a maize‑based staple dish in many African countries)

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The work that Brooks‑church and Sanku are doing continues to expand its reach through the contacts the social entrepreneur has made in his journey so far. Walter Miya, for instance, who founded The Mwadeta School and Centre in Tanzania’s Vikindu village, is now providing local children at his community school with Sanku’s fortified flour, giving them with what Brooks‑church deems the “basic human right” of good nutrition. What might seem like an ordinary meal is in fact life‑changing—improving health, strengthening immunity and raising the prospects of an entire generation.

“We’re super proud to be enabling mills to literally produce life‑saving flour,” says Brooks‑church. “There’s nothing I’d rather be doing.” The ripple effects extend beyond health. By working with local millers, Sanku helps them strengthen their businesses while providing a service to their communities. Employment opportunities are created at every stage—from factory workers producing premix to technicians maintaining the dosifiers. The model is sustainable, scalable and empowering—a rare example of a humanitarian intervention that is also economically viable.

As a Rolex Awards Laureate, he received funding, international recognition and a platform to amplify his work. It has enabled the enterprise to refine its technology, expand into Ethiopia and accelerate progress.

Above A mill worker holding a handful of wheat at the Addis Flour Mill Factory in Burayu, Ethiopia

A mill worker holding a handful of wheat at the Addis Flour Mill Factory in Burayu, Ethiopia

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Rolex’s philosophy of supporting pioneers who push the boundaries of human endeavour—be they explorers scaling Everest, scientists studying glaciers, or entrepreneurs tackling malnutrition—has given Brooks‑church the resources and credibility to scale. However, the fight against malnutrition is far from over. An estimated 2 billion people worldwide still suffer from some form of micronutrient deficiency, and progress remains uneven. But Brooks‑church believes that Sanku’s model is replicable wherever staple foods form the backbone of a diet.

“We’re already a quarter of the way towards our goal of reaching 100 million people by 2030, which we think we’ll reach in the next couple of years,” he says. “It’ll be a lot of work, but it’s definitely achievable.”

Above A woman in Tanzania’s Vikindu village making ugali using Sanku’s fortified flour

A woman in Tanzania’s Vikindu village making ugali using Sanku’s fortified flour

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Under the Same Sky

Tatler believes that true luxury lies in preservation—in safeguarding the beauty of our world for generations to come. Guided by culture, community and creativity, Under the Same Sky shares the stories of those working tirelessly to preserve the health of our planet. These intrepid explorers, organisations, scientists and entrepreneurs are supported by the Rolex Perpetual Planet Initiative, and we are excited to share their innovations and ideas that will hopefully help sustain life on Earth. This is our shared commitment to ensure that the habitability of our planet endures—timeless, vital and everlasting.

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Annabel Tan

Editor, Watches and Jewellery, Tatler Singapore

Annabel Tan is the Editor of Watches and Jewellery at Tatler Singapore, where she covers all things luxury timepieces and fine jewellery across both print and digital platforms. She is also the Editor of Tatler GMT Singapore, a role that deepens her fascination with the ever-evolving world of watchmaking. Outside of work, she’s usually on the hunt for her next favourite watch that she can’t afford, planning her next beach getaway, or catching up on the latest Formula 1 race.

Under the Same Sky: How Rolex Awards Laureate Felix Brooks‐church is combating malnutrition through food fortification

Scaling Up

From Cambodia to East Africa

Under the Same Sky