Fortification of rice to be compulsory from 2024 as a significant percentage of the Indian population continues to suffer from malnutrition and anemia. Hence the government will probably announce a policy to help industry ramp up production of rice fortified with iron, folic acid and Vitamin B12.
Rice is a staple for 65% of India’s population and a key component of the government’s food security programme. It’s supplied at subsidized rates through the Public Distribution System (PDS) and to children through programmes such as the Mid-Day Meal (MDM) scheme and the Integrated Child Development Scheme (ICDS).
“The Food Safety & Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) has proposed that India should go for mandatory fortification of rice from 2024 there has been no perceptible decline in anemia and malnutrition.
It’s estimated that rice fortification costs Rs. 0.73 per kilogram. This translates into an incremental cost of about Rs. 2,655 crores for fortified rice covering the entire government’s food security plan, which is 1.1% of the total annual food subsidy bill of nearly Rs. 2.43 lakh crore for FY22.The Consumer Affairs Minister Piyush Goyal, recently, chaired a meeting on the proposal with top officials of stakeholder ministries including those of health and women and child development. NITI Aayog CEO Amitabh Kant, along with the think tank’s members VK Paul and Ramesh Chand, also attended the meeting, which deliberated on the progress of an ongoing rice fortification pilot project and the future course of action.
The government had identified 15 states in the pilot scheme. However, only six have launched it so far in select districts. “The aim is to roll it out in 250 districts, including the aspirational districts and high-burden districts, from April 1, 2022.”
India classified 94 among 107 countries in the Global Hunger Index last year. The Global Nutrition Report for India said the country had not progressed in achieving the target of reducing anemia among women of reproductive age, with 51.4% of those in the 15-49 age group affected. Further, 34.7% of children less than five years are still affected by stunting, which is higher than the average for the Asian region (21.8%), while 17.3% of children under five are affected by wasting. This is among the worst in the world and higher than the average of 9.1% for the Asian region.