Rice Fortification in India: Activists Raises Health Concerns

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Rice Fortification UPSC: Relevance

GS 2: Government policies and interventions for development in various sectors and issues arising out of their design and implementation.

Recently, activists in Jharkhand have warned that distribution of iron fortified rice through government schemes as a “silver bullet” to curb anaemia must stop in States like Jharkhand.

Jharkhand has large tribal population that suffer from sickle-cell anaemia, thalassemia, and tuberculosis.
In this segment of population, overload of iron can create adverse health issues.
Thalassemia, sickle cell anaemia and malaria are conditions where there is already excess iron in the body, whereas TB patients are unable to absorb iron. Consumption of iron-fortified foods among patients of these diseases can reduce immunity and the reduce functionality of organs.
The experts have also discovered that neither field functionaries nor beneficiaries had been educated about the potential harms.
Moreover, there were no warning labels despite the food regulator’s rules on fortified foods.
The Food Safety and Standards Authority of India’s (FSSAI) Food Safety and Standards (Fortification of Foods) Regulations 2018 require that fortified food packets must mandatorily display the fortification logo (+F),and that every package of food fortified with iron shall carry a warning statement that people with thalassemia may consume it under medical supervision, and persons with sickle cell anaemia are advised not to consume iron fortified food products.
According to a report prepared jointly by the Alliance for Sustainable and Holistic Agriculture (ASHA-Kisan Swaraj) and the Right To Food Campaign, Jharkhand, where fortified rice is being distributed, consent is not being obtained from beneficiaries.

According to Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI), it is deliberately increasing the content of essential micronutrients in a food so as to improve the nutritional quality of food and thus improve public health.
Fortification of rice is a cost-effective and complementary strategy to increase vitamin and mineral content in diets.

भारत में चावल का प्रबलीकरण: कार्यकर्ताओं ने उठाई स्वास्थ्य संबंधी चिंताएं

High levels of malnutrition among women and children in the country.
According to the Food Ministry, every second woman in the country is anaemic and every third child is stunted.
India ranks 94 out of 107 countries and is in the ‘serious hunger’ category on the Global Hunger Index (GHI).

According to FSSAI norms, 1 kg fortified rice will contain
- iron (28 mg-42.5 mg),
- folic acid (75-125 microgram)
- Vitamin B-12 (0.75-1.25 microgram).
In addition, rice may also be fortified with micronutrients, singly or in combination, with zinc and vitamin B.

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