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Average additional content of micronutrients in fortified flours (micronutrient provision)
This indicator describes documentation of the additional nutrients provided by fortification in flour that, by law or standards, should be fortified.
The purpose of large-scale flour fortification is to improve the nutrition and health status of the target population(s). Assessing the intakes of nutrients added to fortified flour reflects exposure to the intervention and is useful for understanding the expected impacts of the intervention.
There are two ways to determine the micronutrient content of fortified flour: (1) using the nutrient profile of samples that were measured by regulatory authorities for external, import or commercial monitoring, or (2) collecting flour samples from households and measuring them in a laboratory.
List of steps for determining micronutrient content:
Step 1. Determine the source of information on the micronutrient content of fortified flour: Monitoring data from regulatory authorities or household sampling.
Monitoring data from regulatory authorities (RA)
Step 2 - RA. Identify and collate monitoring information gathered by food control authorities for flour.
Step 3 - RA. Apply questions on micronutrient content of fortified flour in a survey.
Step 4 - RA. Obtain nutrient levels in fortified and unfortified flour contained in reports from regulatory authorities.
Step 5 - RA. Calculate the amount of nutrient(s) of interest added via fortification by subtracting the values of the unfortified flour from the values of the fortified flour.
Step 6 - RA. Calculate the average additional content of micronutrients in fortified flour.
Household sampling (H)
Step 2 - H. Apply questions on micronutrient content of fortified flour in a survey including collection of flour samples.
Step 3 - H. Obtain nutrient levels in fortified and unfortified flour by laboratory analysis.
Step 4 - H. Calculate the amount of nutrient(s) of interest added via fortification by subtracting the values of the unfortified flour from the values of the fortified flour.
Step 5 - H. Calculate the average additional content of micronutrients in fortified flour.
Considerations for the calculation:
• The native content of nutrients in the unfortified flour must be subtracted from the fortified flour. Otherwise, the sole contribution of fortification cannot be estimated.
• Not all flour in a country is required to be fortified by legislation or regulations. Only the flour types that are expected to be fortified should be sampled and measured.
consumption,consumption monitoring,diet,household monitoring,individual monitoring,ingest,intake,micronutrient provision,nutrients
Food fortification
Accesss to or presence of intervention
12-23 months, 24-35 months, 36-47 months, 48-59 months, 6-11 months, Adolescents, Men, School age children, Women of reproductive age
None,
All
Market-based
Flour needs to be analyzed in a laboratory to determine its nutrient profile. Ideally, nutrients will be analyzed in a laboratory that is ISO 17025-certified in the analysis of all nutrients of interest, and has experience with measuring the nutrients required to be analysed and the type of flour samples to be collected.
It is an objective quantitative assessment of the additional nutrient content provided through fortified flour.
This indicator requires the collection of food samples and paying for laboratory tests to confirm the content, which requires human and financial resources.
In the past year, food control authorities made two visits to a mill that produces Brand A of maize meal. Following external monitoring guidelines at each visit, the inspectors collected four samples during a 1.5-hour period when fortified maize meal was produced. Additionally, they asked the millers for the nutrient profile of unfortified maize meal.
The four samples from the first visit were mixed together to form a composite sample. The same was done with the four samples collected during the second visit. The two composite samples of fortified flour were sent to a food control laboratory for analysis of niacin levels: 59 mg/kg and 72 mg/kg, respectively.
Millers reported that unfortified Brand A maize meal had 12 mg/kg niacin. The niacin value for unfortified maize meal was subtracted from the niacin value of the fortified composite samples; this was done separately for the samples from visits 1 and 2. The amount of niacin contributed by fortification was 47 mg/kg and 60 mg/kg:
• For visit 1: 59 mg/kg – 12 mg/kg = 47 mg/kg
• For visit 2: 72 mg/kg – 12 mg/kg = 60 mg/kg
The average additional content of niacin contributed by fortification for Brand A maize meal (53.5 mg/kg) was calculated by summing the niacin values and dividing by two:
• (47 mg/kg + 60 mg/kg) / 2 = 53.5 mg/kg
1. Approved methods of analysis, 11th ed. Method 40-40.01. Iron-qualitative method. St Paul: AACC International; 2002 (http://methods.aaccnet.org/summaries/40-40-01.aspx, accessed 14 April 2021).