Purabi to fortify ‘Smart Milk’ with vitamins A and D

GUWAHATI, May 29 - To address issues of micronutrient malnutrition and to support the nationwide food fortification initiative of the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) and Tata Trusts, Purabi Dairy will fortify its toned milk variant (Smart Milk) with vitamins A and D.

Fortification means deliberately increasing the content of essential micronutrients in food to improve its quality.

FSSAI has set standards for fortification of salt with iodine and iron; of vegetable oil and milk with vitamins A and D; wheat flour and rice with iron, folic acid, zinc, vitamin B12, vitamin A and some other micronutrients.

Purabi’s fortified milk is likely to be launched later this week. The new packet will have a logo ‘+F’.

The West Assam Milk Producers’ Cooperative Union Limited (WAMUL), commonly known by the brand ‘Purabi’, has extended its support to the fortification initiatives taken by the FSSAI and Tata Trusts to boost fortification, and address the issue of micronutrient malnutrition – a serious health issue affecting all sections of society, said RN Bhattacharyya, senior manager (marketing), WAMUL.

Milk is a rich source of high quality protein, calcium and of fat-soluble vitamins A and D. Many countries have a mandatory provision to add back the vitamins which may be lost during processing as it is easily doable.

Fortification of milk with vitamin A and vitamin D is required in India because of the widespread deficiencies present in the population.

A recent National Nutrition Monitoring Bureau (NNMB) survey and a report of the expert group of ICMR in 2012 stated that India has a very high burden of vitamin A and D deficiencies, amongst both young children and adults, particularly in urban areas as they are physically less active and have a very limited exposure to sunlight. About 70 per cent Indians are deficient in vitamin D and another 15 per cent are insufficient.

Purabi Dairy procures its milk from nearly 200 village-based functional milk producer institutions (MPIs) and dairy cooperative societies in the districts of Kamrup, Morigaon, Nagaon, Barpeta and Nalbari covering around 5,000 dairy farmers.

Consumption of fortified milk by children in India has shown encouraging results. Studies suggest that the intake not only increased mean serum vitamin D levels but also morbidity rates were decreased (18% lower incidence of diarrhoea, 26% lower incidence of pneumonia, 7% fewer days with high fever and 15% fewer days sick with severe illness). Fortification of milk with vitamins A and D is an effective and safe strategy to reduce related deficiency diseases.