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The addition of folic acid to Double Fortified Salt (with iron and iodine) aims to simultaneously ameliorate three major micronutrient deficiencies in vulnerable populations. To make Triple Fortified Salt, we added folic acid to the iodine solution (first method) and the iron premix (second method) that are used to fortify salt with iron and iodine. When added through the solution, sodium carbonate was needed to dissolve folic acid and to adjust pH. Alternately, folic acid was added either to the iron core or sandwiched between the core and TiO 2 layer of the iron premix. Folic acid and iodine were stable in all cases, retaining more than 70% of the added micronutrients after six months at 45 °C/60–70% relative hu. Adding folic acid to the premix's iron core is preferred as folic acid retention was slightly higher, and the added folic acid did not impact the salt's colour. The additional cost for adding the micronutrients to salt is about 27¢/person per year. Folic acid in the fortified salt made with the preferred method was stable in cooking and did not affect selected cooked foods' sensory properties. The technology is a cost-effective approach for simultaneously combating iron, iodine, and folic acid deficiencies.

The technology to simultaneously fortify salt with iron and iodine was developed in Canada and transferred and scaled up in India. The double fortified salt has reached more than 60 million consumers so far. Double fortification of salt is a cost-effective and reliable means of improving iron and iodine deficiencies at a population level. However, high-quality iron premix is essential for the stability of iodine and the program’s success. Therefore, we developed a reliable and cost-effective method for premix coating quality evaluation in the field, especially in low-income settings. The integrity and chemical composition of the coating and exposure of iron at the surface (∼10 μm deep) were determined using scanning electron microscopy and energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy to predict the stability of the fortified salt. The phenanthroline colour dropper test was used to test the quality of the double fortified salt by reaction with ferrous iron present on the premix surface. Five iron premix samples were compared. Based on the iron release, coating composition, and the reaction with phenanthroline, Premix-3, and its corresponding DFS, obtained from a local shop in India had the lowest quality among all samples tested. The results of the dropper test corresponded with the analysis using sophisticated analytical tools, confirming it as a simple, reliable, and cost-effective test for iron premix coating quality and integrity. This simple test would be crucial for a successful double fortification program, especially in low-income countries, in predicting iron premix quality, a critical determinant of iodine stability during storage, distribution, and retail. These study results can help governments and NGOs to establish quality standards for iron premix used for salt fortification programs.

Abstract Objectives This study evaluates factors responsible for the floating of iron premix in double fortified salt (DFS), which initially affected the large-scale implementation of the salt fortification program in India, and provides solutions to the scale-up of the technology. Materials and Methods To mitigate this time-sensitive scale-up challenge. First, the iron premix samples were obtained from the industrial scale-up pilot studies in India, evaluated for the impact of the amount of coating material (5 per cent, 7.5 per cent, and 10 per cent (in weight)), type of formulation (soy stearin, SEPIFILM and hydroxypropyl methylcellulose), amount of titanium dioxide (25-35 per cent (in weight)) used for color masking; Second, we studied the effect of change in the composition of the coating, from 10 per cent (in weight) soy stearin to a double coat with 5 per cent (in weight) hydroxypropyl methylcellulose and 5 per cent soy stearin or 10 per cent soy stearin and 1 per cent (in weight) lecithin mixture, on particle density, floating or sinking property of the iron premix, and on the stability of iodine in the DFS. Results It was observed that the hydrophobic nature and the amount of soy stearin used for coating caused the floating issue. The double coating with 5 per cent hydroxypropyl methylcellulose and 5 per cent soy stearin was preferred because lecithin in soy stearin enhanced the moisture-aided adverse interaction between iron and iodine. Shelf-life storage studies proved over 80 per cent iodine retention after 12 months of storage in the DFS formulated with iron premix double-coated with hydroxypropyl methylcellulose and soy stearin. Conclusion This proffered solution enabled the full implementation of the double fortification program in India.

A new coating formulation was developed to eliminate the factor that caused black spots on the iron premix surface, used for making Double Fortified Salt. The formulation is a suspension of titanium dioxide in soy stearin, prepared with ethanol and dichloromethane and applied with a glass sprayer and pan coater. 0–20% w/w titanium dioxide was suspended in 10% w/w soy stearin/hydroxypropyl methylcellulose. Coating with a suspension of 15% w/w TiO2 in 10% w/w soy stearin ensured that all the TiO2 adheres to the premix surface, giving no chance for the recycling of iron contaminated TiO2, which caused the black spot. The new coating formulation ensured that over 90% iodine in Double Fortified Salt was retained after 6 months at 45 °C, 60–70% RH. The whiteness of the premix (L* = 86.4) matched the Double Fortified Salt whiteness (L* = 86.8). Thus, making the new coating method as effective as the previous in desirable characteristics. More so, the new coating method simplifies the existing method by merging the previous color masking, and double coating steps into one step.

This process was developed to simultaneously deliver iron, iodine, folic acid, and vitamin B12 for holistic prevention of anaemia and other risk factors for prenatal complications in vulnerable populations. Salt was chosen as the ‘vehicle’ for the micronutrients because ‘doses’ of the micronutrients can be predicted. The process was based on a cold forming extrusion-based microencapsulation (for making premix) that ensures that added micronutrients are stable, indistinguishably mixed with salt, do not segregate, and do not cause changes to the sensory characteristics of salt and foods.The dusting of the micronutrient premix with titanium dioxide masked its brown colour while its coating with soy stearin prevented the adverse moisture aided interaction between iron and iodine. The hydrophobic nature and the initial amount of soy stearin used for coating caused the micronutrient premix to float; contamination of TiO2 due to its recycling caused dark spots on the surface premix. Double coating with 5% hydroxypropyl methylcellulose and 5% soy stearin solved the floating problem; coating with a mixture of 15% TiO2 and 10% soy stearin solved both problems.The required pH (≥ 8) for full dissociation of folic acid, its solubility, and stability caused vitamin B12 instability; hence, both micronutrients cannot be added to salt through a solution. In salt, they were lost through oxidative degradation. The coextrusion of folic acid and vitamin B12 with ferrous fumarate (a reducing agent) minimized the oxidative degradation of the micronutrients. The colour masking and coating of the premix ensured that the micronutrients did not affect the colour of the salt. Also, the coextrusion prevented the micronutrients from photodegradation.The salt samples can deliver 50-200% recommended dietary allowances of the micronutrients based on the consumption of 10g of salt per day. The micronutrients were very stable in the salt and met the set target (70% retention after 6-month storage). Over 85% of the micronutrients were retained in salt after 6-month storage, even at 45 °C/60-70% RH. The micronutrients were stable in cooking and did not cause any changes to the sensory properties of the salt or food.