Initiative to reach one billion people with fortified food

The Millers for Nutrition initiative has been launched with a pledge by the coalition behind it to reach a billion people with adequately-fortified staple foods by the year 2026. The initiative, which is aimed at ensuring that more Nigerians have access to nutritious food necessary for healthier and more productive lives, would accelerate large scale food fortification in rice, edible oil, flour and sugar.

The Programme Director for Millers for Nutrition at TechnoServe, Rizwan Yusufali, while speaking at the launch, said that the initiative was dedicated to facilitating the fortification of staple foods and rewarding millers to maintain compliance. “Millers for Nutrition members in Nigeria epitomise a commitment to fortification excellence and product quality that enhances the lives of consumers. By sharing practical tools and expertise from industry leaders, we will enable millers to adopt fortification best practices and turn good fortification into a business advantage”, saying that the initiative is being implemented across eight countries in Africa and Asia, targeting staples such as rice, edible oil, and flour such as wheat and maize.

According to him, by incorporating essential vitamins and minerals into their widely-consumed products, millers can play a pivotal role in reducing malnutrition and enhancing public health. He noted that the coalition would support, enable, and recognise these crucial efforts and that members of Millers for Nutrition would receive recognition for their efforts through platforms like the Micronutrient Fortification Index (MFI) Awards and other promotional activities. “Also, as fortification quality improves, members will benefit from increased recognition for product quality and industry leadership. Participating millers, who commit to improving the nutritional quality of their food, will receive complimentary technical assistance to facilitate fortification.

“This includes tailored training, business guidance, product testing support, and access to online tools and resources, ultimately reducing compliance risks and enhancing production efficiency, he added. According to the Group Managing Director of Flour Mills of Nigeria, Boye Olusanya, “On behalf of millers, we pledge to continue enriching all our brands with necessary vitamins and minerals. Consumers will not only see fortified products, but also detailed information on fortification within the products, as they continue to purchase and consume them. I encourage millers across the country to join the Millers for Nutrition”, Olusanya said. The Director of Food Safety and Applied Nutrition at NAFDAC, Eva Edwards, on behalf of the Director-General, Prof. Mojisola Adeyeye, said NAFDAC welcomes the launch of Millers for Nutrition in Nigeria and expressed gratitude to TechnoServe, their technical partners, and the Gates Foundation for the initiative.

She stated further that they embrace the goal of positively impacting the nutrition of one billion people by 2026 across the eight countries where they operate, including Nigeria. Founding partners such as BASF, DSM-Firmenich, Mühlenchemie/SternVitamin, Piramal, BioAnalyt, and Sanku, along with regional and local technical partners like Hexagon Nutrition in India, are joining forces to support millers in specific regions or staple foods. The Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation is providing strategic input and investment to aid in the coalition’s establishment, while TechnoServe, an international nonprofit with extensive experience in industry-led fortification capacity-building efforts, would oversee programme activities. Also, at the launch, Millers for Nutrition celebrated the winners of the 2024 MFI Awards by recognising millers and brands leading the charge in fortifying their products with essential vitamins and minerals.