| Feeding the Future: Solving for Nutritional Sufficiency, Affordability, and Sustainability of Iranian Diets Through Food Fortification |
| Paper ID : 1265-IGA |
| Authors |
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Mehran Zareian1, Seyyed Reza Sobhani *2 1Department of Nutritional Sciences, Faculty of Medicine, Mashhad University of Medical Sciences, Mashhad, Iran 2Department of Community Nutrition, School of Nutritional Sciences and Dietetics, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran |
| Abstract |
| Background and Aim: The growing economic and environmental burden of food supply necessitates optimal strategies to achieve healthy diets with lower animal-based sources. By analyzing the effects of fortification on costs, calories, carbon footprint, and water footprint of adult males' daily diet, this research aims to determine whether fortification strategies can improve sustainability in the supply of four animal-source micronutrients. The present study is set in Iran, which faces economic challenges and a water scarcity crisis. Methods: This study utilizes adjusted data from the 2023 Household Income and Expenditure Survey. Linear programming was conducted to model three scenarios: No Fortification: Evaluating the parameters to achieve adequate intake of the targeted micronutrients, Calcium, Vitamin D, Iron, and Zinc without fortified foods. Voluntary Fortification: Analyzing the effect of consuming current market-available fortified foods on parameters of the study, if the goal is to provide the four micronutrients. Mandatory Fortification: Investigating the impact of extra fortified food items modeling on the parameters, in accordance with global experiences and guidelines, if the four micronutrients are provided. Results: Mandatory fortification reduced the water footprint by 19% and cost by 11% compared to the baseline, without causing a reduction in the carbon footprint despite lower calories. Trends were almost similar for all four micronutrient models, with mandatory fortification outperforming the voluntary form. Grains, fats, sugars, and the miscellaneous food group reduced (-28 to -83%), while fruits (+21 to +60%) and dairy (+107 to +330%) increased; vegetables fluctuated depending on scenarios, and total protein sources decreased without preferential reduction in animal-based sources. Conclusion: Our findings demonstrate that fortification policies can significantly enhance dietary cost-efficiency and potentially contribute to sustainable food security, which aligns with Sustainable Development Goals 2, 6, and 12. |
| Keywords |
| Food Fortification, Sustainability, Linear Programming, Micronutrients |
| Status: Accepted |
