Fortified Rice in India: A Safe Solution for Combating Micronutrient Deficiencies

Fortified Rice in India: A Safe Solution for Combating Micronutrient Deficiencies

Sub: Sci

Sec: Health

Why in News

The safety of fortified rice has been under scrutiny due to concerns about its effects on individuals with blood disorders like Thalassemia and Sickle Cell Anaemia. The Centre, however, maintains that fortified rice is safe for all, as it follows WHO guidelines and is part of a national initiative to address micronutrient deficiencies.

Rice fortification:

Rice fortification is the process of adding essential vitamins and minerals to rice to improve its nutritional content and address micronutrient deficiencies. Fortified rice typically contains added iron, folic acid, vitamin B12, and sometimes zinc and vitamin A.

Process of Rice Fortification: Rice kernels are fortified with micronutrients through methods like dusting, coating, or extrusion, where nutrients are added to rice during processing. These fortified kernels are then blended with normal rice in a specific ratio, usually around 1:100, ensuring that the final product contains adequate levels of the added nutrients.

The Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) defines fortification as “deliberately increasing the content of essential micronutrients in a food so as to improve the nutritional quality of food and to provide public health benefit with minimal risk to health”.

The cooking of fortified rice does not require any special procedure.

After cooking, fortified rice retains the same physical properties and micronutrient levels as it had before cooking.

Fortified rice will be packed in jute bags with the logo (‘+F’) and the line “Fortified with Iron, Folic Acid, and Vitamin B12”.

Various technologies are available to add micronutrients to regular rice, such as coating, dusting, and ‘extrusion’.

The Extrusion technique involves the production of fortified rice kernels (FRKs) from a mixture using an ‘extruder’ machine.

Need of rice fortification:

India has very high levels of malnutrition among women and children.

According to the Food Ministry, every second woman in the country is anaemic and every third child is stunted.

Fortification of food is considered to be one of the most suitable methods to combat malnutrition.

What are the standards for fortification?

Under the Ministry’s guidelines, 10 g of FRK must be blended with 1 kg of regular rice.

According to FSSAI norms, 1 kg of fortified rice will contain the following: iron (28 mg-42.5 mg), folic acid (75-125 microgram), and vitamin B-12 (0.75-1.25 microgram).

Rice may also be fortified with zinc (10 mg-15 mg), vitamin A (500-750 microgram RE), vitamin B-1 (1 mg-1.5 mg), vitamin B-2 (1.25 mg-1.75 mg), vitamin B-3 (12.5 mg-20 mg) and vitamin B-6 (1.5 mg-2.5 mg) per kg.

Advantages

Fortified staple foods will contain natural or near-natural levels of micro-nutrients, which may not necessarily be the case with supplements.

It provides nutrition without any change in the characteristics of food or the course of our meals.

If consumed on a regular and frequent basis, fortified foods will maintain body stores of nutrients more efficiently and more effectively than will intermittently supplement.

The overall costs of fortification are extremely low; the price increase is approximately 1 to 2 percent of the total food value.

It upholds everyone’s right to have access to safe and nutritious food, consistent with the right to adequate food and the fundamental right of everyone to be free from hunger

Issues with fortified food

Fortification and enrichment upset nature’s packaging. Our body does not absorb individual nutrients added to processed foods as efficiently compared to nutrients naturally occurring.

Supplements added to foods are less bioavailable. Bioavailability refers to the proportion of a nutrient your body is able to absorb and use.

They lack immune-boosting substances.

Fortified foods and supplements can pose specific risks for people who are taking prescription medications, including decreased absorption of other micro-nutrients, treatment failure, and increased mortality risk.

Importance in India:

India launched rice fortification as part of a national effort to improve nutrition, particularly through schemes like the Pradhan Mantri Garib Kalyan Anna Yojana (PMGKAY), aiming to reduce malnutrition and micronutrient deficiencies.

Safety for Individuals with Hemoglobinopathies

Thalassemia and Sickle Cell Anaemia: The Centre affirmed that fortified rice is safe for individuals suffering from these conditions.

The iron intake from fortified rice is minimal when compared to iron absorbed through regular blood transfusions in Thalassemia patients.

People with Sickle Cell Anaemia naturally regulate iron absorption due to elevated levels of hepcidin, a hormone controlling iron uptake.

About Sickle cell disease:

Sickle cell disease is an inherited blood disorder. It is marked by flawed haemoglobin. That’s the protein in red blood cells that carries oxygen to the tissues of the body. So, sickle cell disease interferes with the delivery of oxygen to the tissues.

Red blood cells with normal haemoglobin are smooth, disk-shaped, and flexible, like doughnuts without holes. They can move through the blood vessels easily. Cells with sickle cell haemoglobin are stiff and sticky.

When they lose their oxygen, they form into the shape of a sickle or crescent, like the letter C. These cells stick together and can’t easily move through the blood vessels. This can block small blood vessels and the movement of healthy, normal oxygen-carrying blood. The blockage can cause pain.

Normal red blood cells can live up to 120 days. But sickle cells only live for about 10 to 20 days. Also, sickle cells may be destroyed by the spleen because of their shape and stiffness. The spleen helps filter the blood of infections.

Sickled cells get stuck in this filter and die. With less healthy red blood cells circulating in the body, you can become chronically anaemic. The sickled cells also damage the spleen. This puts you are at greater at risk for infections.

About Thalassemia:

Thalassemia is an inherited blood disorder wherein the body produces an inadequate amount of haemoglobin. Haemoglobin is a protein molecule that carries oxygen in the red blood cells. This disorder results in the extreme destruction of red blood cells that leads to anaemia.

Anaemia is a condition in which the haemoglobin or red blood cells are less than the normal count.

Mild thalassemia requires no treatment, but acute thalassemia might require regular blood transfusions.