Flour Fortification Initiative

Start Date: 2004

Background

The Flour Fortification Initiative (FFI) is a network of partners working together to make flour fortification a standard practice worldwide so that people receive essential nutrients through staple food products. The World Health Organization (WHO) has issued a consensus statement endorsing fortification of flour with iron, folic acid, vitamin B 12, vitamin A, and zinc.¹ Flour fortification allows these vitamins and minerals to be included in bread, noodles, and other wheat or maize products offering a cost-efficient strategy for addressing nutrient deficiencies.

The CDC supports the FFI through the following activities:

• Funding the global secretariat.
• Providing technical assistance in scientific issues related to flour fortification.  For example, through the IMMPaCt program, provided support to the 2nd Technical Workshop on Wheat Fortification.
• Serving as a member of the FFI Executive Management Team to provide strategic direction for the initiative.

Status

Since 2004, the FFI has helped increase the amount of fortified flour produced by roller mills from 18% to 30%.² Additionally, the number of countries with documented national regulations for mandatory wheat flour fortification has increased from 33 to 57.² As a result, in 2007 nearly 2 billion people had potential access to fortified flour; that number is 540 million more people than had access in 2004.²

Future Plans

The FFI is working to increase the amount of wheat flour fortified by roller mills to 80% by 2015, the same year as the target date for achieving the United Nations Millennium Development Goals.² At that time, the FFI will reassess its goals and determine the next steps for making flour fortification a standard practice worldwide.

The CDC plans to continue its current activities in support of the FFI.  

Partners

The FFI partners include individuals, private organizations, public entities, academic institutions and civic groups.

For More Information

For more information about the initiative, see Flour Fortification Initiative.*

Related Resources

Trends in Wheat-Flour Fortification with Folic Acid and Iron --- Worldwide, 2004 and 2007
MMWR January 11, 2008 / 57(01);8—10

References

1. Recommendations on Wheat and Maize Flour Fortification Meeting Report: Interim Consensus Statement - http://www.who.int/nutrition/publications/micronutrients/wheat_maize_fort.pdf* (PDF-104k)
2. FFI: Presentations for Use: FFI 2009 Global Update - http://www.sph.emory.edu/wheatflour/presentations.php*

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