Iron, zinc to be fortified in flour

JAKARTA (JP): Flour producers will soon be required to fortify the iron and zinc content in their products as part of the government's program to reduce anemia in the country.

The government is currently drafting a regulation that will oblige producers to produce flour that contains 60 ppm of iron and 30 ppm of zinc.

Anie Kurniawan of the Ministry of Health and Social Welfare's Directorate of Community Nutrition said the iron and zinc fortification was necessary given the high number of people in the country with iron deficiency anemia.

According to data from the ministry, in 1995 51 percent of pregnant women suffered from iron deficiency anemia, 40 percent of children under the age of 5, 30 percent of school children and 30 percent to 40 percent women workers.

Since the economic crisis hit the country in 1997, these numbers have risen.

"In East Java, for example, data from 1999 shows that some 70.3 percent of pregnant women suffer from anemia. It also attacks some 80.2 percent of teenage girls," Anie said during a seminar here.

She said anemia caused a decrease in immunity and productivity and a lower intelligence quotient.

"We chose fortification because of the lower cost and because it is more effective," the chairman of the ministry's fortification commission, Suroso Natakusuma, said.

Fortification, he claimed, would increase the production cost of flour by about Rp 10 to Rp 15 per kilogram. It now costs about Rp 2,500 (24 US cents) to produce one kilogram of flour.

"Legally, fortification has a strong basis as stipulated in articles 24 and 27 of Law No. 7/1996 on food," Suroso said, referring to the law which states that the government can set requirements on food products in order to increase their nutritional value.

Suroso said it would be preferable to fortify rice because it is more widely consumed in the country.

"But there are thousands of rice millers in this country. It will be difficult for us to control them," he said.

Therefore, he said, flour was chosen because production of this product was concentrated at five companies.

"The companies have agreed to fortify their products because it will also limit the distribution of imported flour, which is of higher quality," Suroso said, adding that fortifying flour was also technically feasible.

He added that flour was one of the primary calorie sources in the country, with 15 kilograms of flour consumed per capita annually.

"The consumption rate also increases every year. It is mostly used in noodles and in the production of bakery products," he said.

He said that research conducted by the ministry in coordination with several international institutions showed no significant effect of fortification on the quality of the flour.

"The United States has used fortification for 50 years, and it is no problem," Suroso asserted.

However, Suroso said the fortification must not burden consumers. "Therefore, in the short term, the government should help the industry fund the program."

He said funds also would come from the United States Agency for International Development and the Canadian International Development Agency.

Suroso also touched on the necessity of monitoring food producers. "Iodization is also mandatory but not every producer does it."

The availability of laboratories is one obstacle to monitoring. Few of the laboratories owned by the food industry are accredited, and less than half of the laboratories owned by the Food and Drug Control Agency and Ministry of Industry and Trade are accredited.

"The number of lab analysts and food inspectors is also still low. The other problem is a lack of consumer awareness," he said.(hdn)