Worldwide, more than 2 billion people have micro-nutrient deficiencies because they aren’t getting enough essential vitamins and minerals each day. Many in India also aren’t meeting the requirement for vitamins and minerals, especially children. Fortified food along with enriched foods were introduced in the 1930s and 1940s. They were intended to help boost vitamin and mineral intake with foods that adults and children were already eating, like grains and milk.
What’s a fortified or enriched food?
Fortified foods are those that have nutrients added to them that don’t naturally occur in the food or are available in low quantities. These foods are meant to improve nutrition and provide health benefits to the consumer. For example, milk is often fortified with vitamin D, and calcium may be added to fruit juices.
An enriched food means that nutrients that were lost during processing are added back in. Many refined grains are enriched. Wheat flour, for example, may have folic acid, riboflavin, and iron added back in after processing. This is intended to restore its original vitamin levels.
Provee's take on Fortification of foods
At Provee, we believe that it is difficult to obtain the right amount of micro-nutrients from whole and natural foods, especially with our busy lifestyles. It is thus extremely important for us to consume foods that are fortified with complex nutrients like proteins along with super-foods that add a ton of benefits to our diets.
While fortified and enriched foods can certainly add to a healthy diet, they aren’t enough by themselves. You still need to eat a well-rounded, varied diet that is loaded with vegetables and other whole foods.