Recently, the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) was alerted by a group of scientists and activists about the potential negative impacts of food fortification on health and livelihoods. The warnings appear to push back against the government’s plan to mandatorily fortify rice and edible oils with vitamins and minerals. This plan was created in response to chronic anaemia and undernutrition, which are persistent health issues in the country. From 2021, the government plans to distribute fortified rice via the Integrated Child Development Services and Mid Day Meal Schemes across the nation, especially in Aspirational districts.
Key Points of Debate
The evidence in favour of fortification is inconclusive and critics argue that it is not adequate enough to justify the rollout of major national policies. Concerns have been raised about potential conflicts of interest, as many studies promoting fortification are sponsored by food companies that would profit from such policies.
Health Risks: Hypervitaminosis and Toxicity
Recent studies in the Lancet and the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition suggest that both anaemia and Vitamin A deficiencies may be overdiagnosed. This could mean that mandatory fortification might result in hypervitaminosis – a condition caused by abnormally high storage levels of vitamins leading to symptoms such as over-excitement, irritability, or even toxicity.
Another problem highlighted is that nutrients don’t work in isolation; they require each other for optimal absorption. Critics argue that simply adding one or two synthetic chemical vitamins and minerals won’t resolve the larger issue of undernourishment, which is largely caused by monotonous cereal-based diets with low consumption of vegetables and animal protein. There is also potential for toxicity in undernourished populations. A 2010 study showed iron fortification causing gut inflammation and pathogenic gut microbiota profile in undernourished children.
Economic Impacts: Cartelisation and Devaluation of Natural Food
Mandatory fortification could harm the informal economy of Indian farmers and food processors, including local oil and rice mills. Critics argue that it could instead benefit a small group of multinational corporations who would control a Rs.3,000 crore market. Globally, just five corporations have reaped most benefits from fortification trends and they’ve been known to engage in cartelising behaviour leading to price hikes.
Moreover, dietary diversity is considered a healthier and more cost-effective solution to combat malnutrition. The introduction of iron-fortified rice as a remedy to anaemia could decrease the value and choice of naturally iron-rich foods like millets, leafy vegetables, flesh foods, and liver.
About Food Fortification
According to the World Health Organization (WHO), food fortification is the practice of deliberately increasing the content of essential micronutrients in food to improve its nutritional quality and provide a public health benefit with minimal risk to health. This differs from biofortification which aims to increase nutrient levels in crops during plant growth rather than through manual means during processing of the crops.
Food fortification can be targeted for specific population subgroups, like complimentary foods for young children or rations for displaced populations, or it can be driven by the market, allowing food manufacturers to voluntarily fortify foods available in the marketplace.
Government Interventions: FSSAI Regulations and Projects
In October 2016, FSSAI operationalized the Food Safety and Standards (Fortification of Foods) Regulations, 2016 for fortifying staples like wheat flour, rice, milk, and edible oil, and double fortified salt to combat micronutrient malnutrition in India.
In addition, India’s National Nutritional strategy, 2017 listed food fortification as an intervention to address anaemia, vitamin A and iodine deficiencies. Moreover, the Milk Fortification Project was launched by the National Dairy Development Board (NDDB) in collaboration with the World Bank and Tata Trusts, as a pilot project in 2017.
About FSSAI
FSSAI is an autonomous statutory body established under the Food Safety and Standards Act, 2006. It’s headquartered in Delhi and functions under the administrative Ministry of Health & Family Welfare. Its main functions include framing regulations for food safety standards, granting food safety licenses and certification for food businesses, laying down procedures for laboratories in food businesses, providing policy suggestions to the government, collecting data regarding food contaminants, identifying emerging risks, introducing a rapid alert system, and creating a national information network about food safety.
