In 1980, Venkatesh Mannar was working at his family’s salt factory in Thoothukudi in southern India when he got a call from UNICEF. They were beginning the drive to iodize salt in developing countries with the goal to eradicate iodine deficiency, which can cause goiter, mental development problems, and other health issues. While iodized salt had already become established in developed economies, that wasn’t the case in less-developed countries.
“Over the next 30 years, beginnin…