Staple Food Fortification crucial to the fight against malnutrition in India

The National Institute on Nutrition in collaboration with GAIN address gaps in food fortification guidelines for packaged foods, More than 40 experts met in Hyderabad to draft a working paper for the Food Safety Standards Authority of India.

Malnutrition is rampant in India and multiple micronutrient deficiencies coexist. Food fortification is one of the most effective public health measures to control micronutrient deficiency in the population. The Government has provided guidelines on food fortification for Government run - programs like the Public Distribution system (PDS), the Integrated Child Development Services (ICDS) and the mid-day meal (MDM).

Nutrition experts addressing food fortification in India.

Yet there are no clear guidelines on food fortification for staple foods available in the market. Under the Prevention of Food Adulteration Act (PFA) which is now called The Food Safety and Standards Act (FSSA), voluntary fortification guidelines are only given for whole wheat flour (Aata) and refined wheat flour (Maida). Moreover, these guidelines include only some nutrients and do not cover essential ones like folic acid, zinc, vitamin B12. Hence, the need was felt by the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI1)

Stakeholder Consultation on Regulation for Staple Food Fortification

Nutrition Panel in Hyderabad, India.

The Indian National Institute of Nutrition (NIN) in collaboration with GAIN organized a Stakeholder Consultation in Hyderabad (Andhra Pradesh) on 15th April 2011 to review the existing guidelines on staple food fortification.

More than 40 experts from different fields including nutrition, regulatory monitoring, civil society and industry participated. The NIN had prepared a draft working paper on staple food fortification and had circulated the same for comments to the invited participants. Following detailed deliberations the expert group prepared a recommendation for fortification of the following food vehicles: wheat flour (both high-extraction flour and refined flour), refined oil, processed low fat milk, rice and salt for double fortification with iron and iodine.

The recommendation of the meeting has been submitted to the Food Safety Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) to be considered by its scientific panel.

1. 1. The Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) is the statutory agency at the Central Government level which regulates the new integrated food law, Food Safety and Standards Act (FSSA). The National Institute of Nutrition at the Indian Council of Medical Research is a nodal agency of nutrition in India. The director of the National Institute of Nutrition is a member of many committees working on the amendments/additions in the FSSA and a Member Secretary of the Expert Group of the Indian Council of Medical Research for the Nutrient Requirements and Recommended Dietary Allowances for Indians (Edition 2010).