Belgrade Forum Moves Forward Efforts in Russia and Ukraine to Ensure Optimum Iodine Nutrition

On 2-3 March 2011, UNICEF and GAIN organized a joint forum in Serbia to create new coalitions of supporters in Russia and Ukraine to bring forward and implement national salt iodization strategies. Russia and Ukraine are the two most populous countries in Central and Eastern Europe and the Commonwealth of Independent States, and also the only two countries that have not yet passed mandatory laws on universal salt iodization. An estimated 1.5 million infants in Russia and Ukraine are born in households not using adequately iodized salt every year. Insufficient iodine in diets can cause children to suffer from irreversible mental disabilities. Both countries are among the 13 target countries of the GAIN-UNICEF Universal Salt Iodization (USI) Partnership Program. 

Public and Private Sector Participation
Mandatory use of iodized salt in the food industries, such as bread, meat, and dairy products, has led to vast progress in other countries in the region given that a significant level of salt intake comes from processed foods.  Participants in the forum included salt producers and traders, food industry representatives, public officials, civil society organizations, and academic advisors.  Russian and Ukrainian arguments against Universal Salt iodization have been centered on suspected prevention of free consumer choice.  The forum reframed the discussion to emphasize that optimum iodine nutrition can be achieved without depriving consumers of their choice between iodized and non-iodized table salt.  Other countries’ experience shows that optimum iodine nutrition has been reached through providing iodized salt through alternative channels including the food industry and public catering.

The government has the ultimate authority to define and enforce a mandatory iodization program, and this meeting marked first-time participation of certain key ministry representatives, who presented proposals for national salt iodization strategies.   The private sector plays a crucial role in generating industry acceptance, consumer demand and overall support.  At the forum, one Russian salt producer expressed willingness for the first time to promote iodized salt to their major customers including retail chains and food industries.  Also, food industry participants agreed that where there is no legal or technical barrier to use iodized salt in the food industries, such as the case in the bread industry in Russia, the private sector can voluntarily start.

Learning from Successes in the Region
The program shared examples of successful countries which eliminated IDD through specific strategies geared towards iodized salt use in the food industries, in particular Kazakhstan and Belarus.  The strategy to allow free sales of iodized and non-iodized salt but mandate iodized salt in the food industries was particularly appealing to proponents of free consumer choice.  One salt trader reported that in Russia, nearly half of edible salt produced goes to the food industries and that this supply channel could therefore be a significant contributor to optimum iodine nutrition of the population.

Outcomes and Next Steps
Participants were impressed with the success of their neighbors and motivated to change the situation in their countries.  Russian salt and bread baking industries expressed interest in collaborating with their Belarusian and Kazakh counterparts, and participants from Russia decided to discuss harmonization of requirements regarding iodized salt within their regional Customs Union Committee.  Both Russian and Ukrainian participants agreed to look at solutions to resolve the regulatory needs for the food industries and collaborate with the UNICEF-GAIN partnership on the issue.

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About Iodine Deficiency:
Iodine is an essential mineral for brain development and growth. Iodine deficiency can severely impair the development of the brain of the fetus and children in the first few years of life, causing irreversible damage, and in severe cases, mental retardation. According to UNICEF, every year 38 million children are born with impaired mental abilities because their mothers' diets do not contain enough iodine.  However this loss in human potential can be prevented by a safe, simple, and inexpensive solution:  salt iodization. The World Bank reports that this intervention costs US$ .05 per child per year.
Contact GAIN:
http://www.gainhealth.org/contact

About GAIN:
The Global Alliance for Improved Nutrition (GAIN) is an alliance driven by the vision of a world without malnutrition. Created in 2002 at a Special Session of the UN General Assembly on Children, GAIN supports public-private partnerships to increase access to the missing nutrients in diets necessary for people, communities and economies to be stronger and healthier. An estimated 400 million people most at risk of malnutrition are benefitting from sustained and affordable nutritionally enhanced food products in more than 25 countries. Half of the beneficiaries are women and children. GAIN is a Swiss foundation headquartered in Geneva with a special international status granted by the Swiss government. Its worldwide presence includes an office in Washington D.C. as well as regional and country representatives in Africa, Asia and the Middle East to support its activities.