Food Fortification Overview

A broader term encompassing both under-nutrition (not enough nutrients) and over-nutrition (too many calories or specific nutrients).

The deliberate addition of unwanted substances to food, often to increase its weight, appearance, or shelf-life. This reduces the quality and can be harmful.

Substances added to food to improve its safety, flavor, texture, or appearance. Examples include preservatives, flavor enhancers, and coloring.

The process of adding essential nutrients, like vitamins or minerals, to food products to improve their nutritional value and fight deficiencies.

A range of micronutrient deficiencies, including vitamins and minerals, that can lead to various health problems.

Conditions caused by vitamin D deficiency. Rickets affects children, causing bone weakness, while osteomalacia affects adults, leading to soft bones.

A deficiency in vitamin B12, leading to a type of anemia characterized by large, abnormal red blood cells.

A deficiency in vitamin C, causing fatigue, joint pain, and gum problems.

The process of adding essential nutrients to food to improve nutritional quality and combat malnutrition.

Replacing nutrients lost during food processing, often required by law.

Creating a substitute product with similar nutritional value by adding certain nutrients.

Improving the nutritional content of staple crops through traditional breeding or biotechnology.

Using synthetic biology to enhance taste, nutritional properties, and create new foods.

Adding nutrients to commonly consumed foods during manufacturing, like cereals.

Adding micronutrient powders or supplements to homemade food.

Fortified foods are commonly found in staple products.

Enhancing food with nutrients, most frequently vitamins and minerals, to address insufficient dietary intake and prevent health problems.

Fortification that occurs by law in certain countries, meaning it's obligatory for manufacturers to add specific nutrients to food.

Fortification that is optional, meaning manufacturers choose whether to add nutrients to food or not.

The addition of nutrients to breakfast cereals to make them more nutritious and support better dietary intake of essential vitamins and minerals.

The practice of setting maximum safe levels and minimum required levels of nutrients that can be added to food to ensure safety and effectiveness.

The practice of not fortifying unprocessed foods (fruits, vegetables, meat, poultry, fish) and beverages with high alcohol content.

A legal requirement in the EU, margarine must contain a minimum of 80% and less than 90% fat with a maximum of 3% milk fat. It's mandatory to fortify margarine with vitamin A (800-1000µg per 100g) and vitamin D (7.05-8.82µg per 100g).

The World Health Organisation (WHO) recommends universal salt iodization, which means adding iodine to all salt consumed by humans and animals. This is the main strategy to eliminate iodine deficiency.

Supplementation refers to providing concentrated sources of nutrients (like vitamins and minerals) or other substances with nutritional or physiological effects. They are marketed in 'dose' forms like pills, tablets, capsules, or liquids in measured doses. They are highly concentrated forms of nutrients produced by pharmaceutical companies and are intended to correct nutritional deficiencies.

Supplementation is often recommended for growing children, especially if their diet is not varied. It is important to ensure children get enough Vitamin A, C, and D, especially as there are limited sources of Vitamin D in food. In the EU, all children from 6 months to 5 years old receive vitamin drops containing Vitamins A, C, and D.

Pregnant women are advised to take various supplements: 400µg of folic acid daily before and during the first trimester, 10µg of Vitamin D daily throughout pregnancy, 40-50mg of iron daily from week 10 of pregnancy, and 500mg of calcium daily for those who don't consume milk or dairy products.