DSM Nutritional Products and Buhler AG have developed an efficient and reliable solution for rice fortification, NutriRice®: Recomposed, vitamin and mineral enriched rice kernels formed by extrusion of rice flour, thereby protecting the incorporated vitamins and minerals.
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NutriRice® characteristics in brief:
- Looks, tastes and cooks exactly like ordinary rice
- Fortified kernels deliver the added micronutrients to the consumer as intended
- Kernels can be customized in shape, color, and micronutrient composition
Rice is the major staple food for millions of individuals. It provides more than a fifth of the world's food calories. In Asia in particular, people eat about 150 kg milled rice annually. However, milled rice is a poor source of micronutrients. Most of them are lost during milling of the kernels. Rice fortification is an effective way to improve nutritional status
Rice fortification is an effective way to improve nutritional status
The addition of essential vitamins and minerals to rice helps to reduce hidden hunger and improve the health of people whose staple diet consists mainly of rice.
Since 2008 GAIN has been awarding prizes to companies which stand out in the development of new products and services in the fight against malnutrition as well as in the improvement of public health and in sustainable development.
After the projects of all the candidates had been judged, the eight jurors came to the conclusion that NutriRice represents the most innovative development.
"The jurors were very impressed by the innovative features of NutriRice. In the past, efforts to fortify rice were not very successful, in part sometimes because of cultural practices and different eating habits. The efforts of DSM to achieve a production process for fortified rice which would also be accepted by people with a low income are a significant innovation", as the GAIN press release of May 14, 2009 put it.
More information at www.gainaward.com
Mauricio Adade (right) and Bruno Kistner (left) during the official ceremony in Amsterdam on May 27.
India has the world's largest national rice crop. Since rice forms the staple diet of a large portion of the population, particularly in southern India, the country’s public distribution network, also the world’s largest, helps provide food to millions of low income and malnourished families.
"This breakthrough in fortified rice demonstrates the tremendous impact that a public private sector partnership can have, applying the best technology available to reach India's most vulnerable", states Venkatesh Mannar, President of MI.
Through several programs, such as the Targeted Public Distribution System (TPDS), the Mid-Day Meal (MDM) for school children, and the Integrated Child Development Services (ICDS), absorbable micronutrients will be disseminated by fortifying the rice distributed through these programs. Easily integrated into existing diets, rice fortification does not call for changes in dietary habits or consumption patterns of the population.
"This technology is a breakthrough in providing essential vitamins to processed white rice. It enables one of the major staple foods in the world to become nutritious without changing color or taste of the rice and with the ability that the essential vitamins remain in the rice after cooking", states Bruno Kistner from the DSM Nutrition Improvement Program.
This partnership is a result of the strong networks that MI has developed with national, regional, and international organizations and governments. These networks, particularly in comprehensive nutrition programs across Africa and Asia, are supported by extensive and successful global advocacy efforts. The three organizations will team up in a unique, catalytic partnership that will improve the health of children and families.
Extract from MI press release, March 2008
The Micronutrient Initiative (MI), Bühler and DSM have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) to ensure the sustained availability of rice, fortified with multiple micronutrients, to populations affected by hidden hunger. This historic partnership, signed in January, 2008, provides the framework for the development of a sustainable, practical and cost-effective means of overcoming micronutrient malnutrition.
In May GAIN (Global Alliance for Improved Nutrition) and the International Business Leaders Forum (IBLF) gave our NutriRice® an award among many candidates for the most innovative product for rice fortification.