What is Food Fortification, Supplementation, Adulteration and Additives?

Table of Contents

Food fortification:

Food fortification is also known as the food enrichment.
Food fortification refers to the addition of nutrient/s to the food to increase the nutritional quality.
Food fortification is one of the strategies to fight malnutrition.
Example of commonly fortified foods include iodine in salt; iron in wheat and maize flours; vitamin A edible oils etc.
Food fortification is usually done in staple foods.
Foods fortified with iron will likely have the highest impact on anemia, although foods fortified with other nutrients, such as vitamin A and folic acid, may also be important.

Food supplementation refers to supplementing/providing concentrated sources of nutrients (i.e. mineral and vitamins) or other substances with a nutritional or physiological effect that are marketed in “dose” form (e.g. pills, tablets, capsules, liquids in measured doses).
Food supplementation are concentrated source that are marketed in dose form.
Food supplementation are intended to correct nutritional deficiencies.
The purpose of food supplementation is to supplement the normal diet with concentrated sources of nutrients or other substances with a nutritional or physiological effect
They are highly concentrated form of nutrient produced by pharmaceutical manufactures in the form of capsules, tablets, pills.
Examples: Vitamin A supplementation, Iron supplementation to pregnant and lactating women etc.

Food adulteration refers to the addition or mixture of unwanted materials to the food.
It is the process of decrease in the food quality due to addition of the lower quality products or due to the extraction of the important ingredient/s.
Food adulteration decreases the quality of the food and could possess the threat
The adulteration process could be intentional or incidental.
Incidental adulteration refers to the addition of the foreign particle due to ignorance, negligence or accidently
Intentional adulteration refers to the purposeful addition of foreign particle for improving the appearance, weight, or to gain profits.
Addition of synthetic milk in cow milk, mixing of saw dust with turmeric or spices, etc., are the common examples of food adulteration.

Food additives are substances added to food to maintain safety, freshness, taste, texture or appearance of the food/s.
The use of food additives ranges from very ancient times to the current day. However, the quantity of food additives at present day has increased while the quality of additives has decreased over the time period.
Food additives include food coloring, flavor enhancer or preservatives.
Monosodium Glutamate (MSG), salt, etc., are the examples of the food additives
They are not necessarily harmful, if used in right quantity and only if necessary.

Food fortification	Food adulteration
“The process whereby nutrients are added to foods to maintain or improve the quality of the diet of a group, a community or a population.” WHO	Food adulteration is the process of decrease in the food quality due to addition of the lower quality products or due to the extraction of the important ingredient.
It has positive effect on health	It has negative effect on health
It is supposed to increase or improve the nutritional status of the people	It is supposed to decrease or deteriorate the health and nutrition status of the people
Food fortification is done after fulfilling the certain standard criteria	Food adulteration is incidental or intentional.
It is legal and global standard guidelines are followed for fortification of different food for different group of people	It is illegal

Food adulteration	Food additives
Food adulteration is the process of decrease in the food quality due to addition of the lower quality products or due to the extraction of the important ingredient	Food additives are the non-nutritional substances added to food to maintain safety, freshness, taste, texture or appearance of the food.
It usually possesses health risk	They may or may not possess heath risk
Adulteration lowers or degrades the quality of the food	Additives improve the general quality of the food
Adulteration is unethical activity and is not accepted in food processing	Additive is permissible and, in many cases, an essential step as well for maintaining the quality of food
The prime motive of adulteration is to earn profit	The prime motive is of food additive to preserve the food
Examples: Addition of saw powder, brick powder, chalk powdered, etc., to the species is adulteration	Example: Species have certain level of additives in the form of the color to enhance the look/appearance