Malnutrition is a major problem in India. An Indian government survey says that 35.5% of children under 5 years are malnourished. To deal with this situation, the government took a major decision on October 9. The government has allowed the distribution of fortified rice in place of normal rice in all its free ration schemes.
The Central Government has decided to distribute fortified rice under Pradhan Mantri Garib Kalyan Anna Yojana (PMGKAY) and other welfare schemes. The government will spend Rs 17,082 crore on this scheme till December 2028.
It aims to eliminate anemia and micronutrient deficiency in people. The question arises, what is fortified rice and how is it different from normal rice?
So today In 'Work News' We will talk about fortified rice. We will also know the answers to all these related questions from the experts.
Expert – Dr. Poonam Tiwari, Senior Dietitian, Dr. Ram Manohar Lohia Institute of Medical Sciences, Lucknow
Scary statistics of malnutrition in India First of all, it is important to know that 74% of the population in India does not have a healthy diet and 39% are deficient in adequate nutrients. See the diagrams in the graphic below.
Q- What is Fortified? What does food fortification mean? Answer- The English word Fortify means to strengthen something, to make a protective shield. Food fortification here means to increase the nutrients. Food fortification is a process of increasing the amount of essential vitamins and minerals in a food. So that the nutritional quality of food improves.
Question: What is fortified rice? Answer- Rice is a regularly consumed staple food in many countries. However, people in these countries are also severely deficient in micronutrients. In this case, some micronutrients like iron, folic acid, B-complex vitamins, vitamin-A and zinc are mixed separately in this rice. These are the nutrients that are the basic requirements of our body. These are usually not found in rice or are lost during processing. So, after fortifying the rice, essential nutrients are added to it. Rice prepared in this way is called fortified rice.
Q- What is the difference between fortified rice and normal rice? Answer- There is not much difference between the two types of rice except for additional nutrients. However, it can be identified by a few things. Find out about this through the graphic below.
Question: How is fortified rice prepared? Answer- This rice is prepared in three ways.
by coating For this, ordinary rice is immersed in nutrient liquid. The liquid can also be sprinkled on the rice. This method is only useful in countries where people do not wash rice before cooking.
By dusting Under this process, a nutrient liquid is sprinkled on ordinary rice. After this it is dried. This forms a layer over the rice. Fortified rice made by Deadsting cannot be washed or cooked with excess water.
Extrusion by Rice grains are ground into flour. It is then mixed with nutrients and cooked to make a grain like rice. This grain is then mixed with ordinary rice. Hot extrusion is considered to be the most effective method for fortifying rice.
Question- How much fortified rice does India produce? Answer- According to the Ministry of Consumer Affairs, Food and Public Distribution, India produced 7,250 tonnes of fortified rice in 2018, but this number will increase to around 60,000 tonnes per year by 2022. The government had launched a scheme to distribute fortified rice in 11 states in the year 2019. Till May, 2021, 1.73 lakh metric tonnes of fortified rice was distributed under this scheme. By February, 2022, this number increased to 3.64 lakh metric tonnes. Now its production is increasing rapidly every day.
Q- What do the World Health Organization guidelines say about fortified rice? Answer- The World Health Organization (WHO) views fortified rice as an important public health strategy. According to WHO, malnutrition is a major problem in the world today. People need iron, folic acid, vitamin A and micronutrients. These are the main reasons for fortifying rice-
- Rice is a staple food in most of the world.
- It is easily grown.
- It is easy to store.
- The process of fortifying rice is relatively simple. So WHO recommends to eat fortified rice.
Question: How is fortified rice eaten? Answer- It is cooked and eaten like normal rice. There is no special process to cook it. This is just normal rice. Only it contains some additional nutrients.
Question- What are the main nutrients added to rice in the process of fortification? Answer: Many vitamins and minerals are added to rice to make it nutritious. See graphic below-
Q- Is it only for malnourished people or other middle class people can also eat fortified rice? Answer- Absolutely. Anyone can eat it. The extra nutrients it contains are beneficial for everyone. Even people who are not poor or have easy access to food can be deficient in essential nutrients.
Q- Is fortified rice more expensive than normal rice? Answer- According to the Food Fortification Initiative (FFI), fortified rice may be slightly more expensive than regular rice, but the price difference is only between 0.5 to 3%. The price difference between the two is not so much that it cannot be afforded.
Question- Can eating fortified rice cause any health harm? Answer- Generally there is no harm in eating it. The World Health Organization and UNICEF, the UN agency working for children, recommend feeding fortified rice to meet the nutritional needs of children.
However, it also has a risk factor, called hypervitaminosis in medical parlance. This condition occurs when the amount of vitamins and nutrients in the body exceeds the requirement. But experts believe that overnutrition is not a problem all over the world today, but malnutrition i.e. not meeting the basic nutritional needs of the body is a bigger problem.
Image Credit: (Divya-Bhaskar): Images/graphics belong to (Divya-Bhaskar).
