The Second Global Summit on Food Fortification Virtual Series will kick off today November 6th with a high-level launch event as part of the Micronutrient Forum Global Conference CONNECTED. This year’s Summit will gather thousands of experts on food fortification, staple crop biofortification, food systems, and nutrition. Due to COVID-19 the Summit will go fully digital.
The Government of People’s Republic of Bangladesh has just given the green light to the new Iodised Salt Act 2020 act aimed at improving the monitoring and efficacy of the country’s salt iodisation programme. The new Act will increase and incentivise compliance, as well as strengthen the ability of the regulatory authorities to enforce salt iodisation.
As the COVID-19 pandemic shifts into its second phase, food fortification has never been so necessary in the fight against malnutrition, according to a call to action endorsed by Food Fortification Initiative, Global Alliance for Improved Nutrition, Helen Keller International, Iodine Global Network, Nutrition International, the Scaling Up Nutrition Movement, UNICEF and the World Food Programme.
We are pleased to announce 8 through 13 November, 2020 as the new dates for the Micronutrient Forum 5th Global Conference , 8 and 9 November 2020 as the new dates for the Second Global Summit on Food Fortification in Bangkok, Thailand.
Conflict and political crises continue to dominate Afghanistan’s media profile. At the same time, there is another crisis that does not make it into the headlines. That is the silent crisis of malnutrition. This burden undermines the development efforts of all stakeholders: the government, the private sector, civil society, the UN and other development partners.
Two-thirds of all countries mandate food fortification to combat hidden hunger, yet many are not necessarily translating policy into improved nutrition, according to new data from the Global Fortification Data Exchange (GFDx). These countries may be missing an immense opportunity to improve the health of children and mothers, bolster communities, and boost national economies.
Nearly 19 million babies born globally every year – 14% – are at risk of permanent yet preventable brain damage and reduced cognitive function due to a lack of iodine in the earliest years of life, according to a new joint report by UNICEF and GAIN released today. More than 1 in 4 of these children – 4.3 million – lives in South Asia.
An international research team, led by ETH Zurich in collaboration with the Global Alliance for Improved Nutrition (GAIN), and with inputs from UNICEF, demonstrate that if most salt for human consumption is iodized, salt will provide sufficient dietary iodine to all population groups.
Scientists fear up to 50% of all newborns in Europe do not reach their full cognitive potential due to iodine deficiency. Today with the Krakow Declaration on Iodine presented at the Jagiellonian University, scientists from the EUfunded project EUthyroid, supported by several stakeholder organisations, call on European policy-makers to support measures to eliminate iodine deficiency.
A review of grain fortification monitoring documents from 68 countries indicates that key elements are generally missing from the material. To help countries revise their documentation or establish new programs, the review authors created a 44-point checklist with sample text for food fortification legislation, standards, and monitoring policies.