International Webinar on ‘Large Scale Food Fortification’ held on 26th April, 2022
The Department of Foods and Nutrition, Faculty of Family and Community Sciences, The Maharaja Sayajirao University of Baroda (MS University), in partnership with the National Centre for Excellence and Advanced Research on Anaemia Control (NCEAR-A)-AIIMS, New Delhi, Postgraduate Institute of Medical Education and Research (PGIMER), Chandigarh and National Institute of Food Technology, Entrepreneurship and Management (NIFTEM)-Haryana, organized an International Webinar on ‘Large Scale Food Fortification’ on 26th April 2022 from 5.30 PM to 7.30 PM (IST), on the theme – ‘Food Fortification: Accelerating action to reduce micronutrient malnutrition’.
Delivering the keynote address, Inoshi Sharma, Executive Director, Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI), said “To overcome widespread micronutrient deficiency, we need complementary strategies. Food fortification perhaps is the easiest and most cost-effective way to tackle these issues. Collectively, we can make food fortification a reality. The vehicles chosen are staples consumed in daily diets and this would provide universal coverage. Food Fortification strategy must be monitored and reviewed periodically.”
Speaking of reaching out to the vulnerable with Vitamin A fortification, Dr Georg Lietz, Professor for International Nutrition at the Human Nutrition Research Centre, Newcastle University, UK, shared insights from global studies and said, “Vitamin A deficiency remains a public health concern in South Asia and more so during the COVID-19 pandemic. Mandatory Vitamin A fortification across the world has shown effective results in reducing Vitamin A Deficiency (VAD). For instance, sugar fortification with vitamin A in Guatemala resulted in a successful reduction of VAD from 15.6% to 0.6% from the year 1995 to 2013. Going forward, India can learn from such global experiences. However, regular monitoring of both dietary intake and biochemical indicators, documenting impact, effectiveness and safety, and strengthened industry motivation would be vital in implementing a safe Vitamin A fortification program.”
Highlighting the importance of a continuous cycle of research, policy making, and programme implementation in public health, Dr Kapil Yadav (MBBS, MD), Additional Professor, (NCEAR-A), AIIMS, New Delhi said, “Evidence-based decision making is key to moving successfully from research to policy to programme. Universal salt iodisation is India’s biggest success story in fortification, and continuous data, monitoring, and evaluation of quality coverage and consumption have been critical to this achievement. These learnings will be crucial to keep in mind as we implement iron, folic acid, Vitamin B12 fortification in public food programmes to prevent nutritional anemia as mandated under Anemia Mukt Bharat program.”
In a country like India, which has a high prevalence of vitamin and mineral deficiencies and the negative health impacts of such deficiencies, staple foods fortified with multiple nutrients is a population-based approach that can advance the ultimate goal of healthy, safe diets for everyone.