Rice: a potential vehicle for micronutrient fortification

Abstract

The choices of consumer towards food have been changed. Consumer prefers to eat food which is not only safe but also nutritious. Now a day, they like to eat the food which promote their health and help in minimizing nutrition related health hazards. Rice is a staple food in many countries, but most emerging issue is that rice is deficit in minerals. Rice ranks second among cereals in dietary uses around the world. Rice is deficit in iron (Fe) zinc (Zn) and these are important micronutrients for infants, men and women. Fortification of rice with iron and zinc would help to minimize nutrient deficient disorders among humans. Present study is aimed to introduce nutrients rich rice for consumers and also to encourage food-fortification organizations for diverting their focus on rice fortification. In south Asian countries, micronutrient deficiency especially Fe and Zn deficiency is very common. The rice because of its use as a staple food can be utilized as a carrier medium for transporting micronutrients from plants sources to human beings. Hence, rice fortification with microminerals can prove as a miracle for the virtual eradication of nutrition related diseases in humans.

Market assessment of fortified parboiled rice in Burkina Faso

“…According to the Food and Agriculture Organization, mass fortification is an efficient and cost-effective method to alleviate micronutrient deficiency. Being a staple crop in the world’s most densely populated regions, rice is an excellent product for delivering micronutrients through fortification [ 15 ]. Moreover, most rice produced worldwide is handled in a centralized way by millers that use paddy rice as an input in the production of milled rice, which also presents a unique opportunity for fortification interventions [ 16 ].…”

Physicochemical characterization of a composite flour: Blending purple sweet potato and rice flours

“…Reports suggest that rice nutrition may be unbalanced, necessitating the addition of nutritional supplements or blending with other ingredients to enhance its nutritional profile and physicochemical properties. ( Acharya, Karki, Rai, & Sangroula, 2023 ; Junaid-ur-Rahman et al, 2022 ; Zheng et al, 2020 ).There is a need to accelerate the development of rice products to improve the overall quality of traditional rice foods.…”