LAHORE:The nutrition experts discussed the need for an enabling policy and regulatory environment to support sustainable fortification efforts at a media sensitisation workshop - ‘Ghizaiyat se Bharpoor Khuraak, Har Shakhs ka Bunyadi Haq,’ here.
The workshop was organised by Nutrition International to strengthen understanding of food fortification and highlight nutrition challenges in Punjab, which is the only province yet to introduce legislation vis-a-vis food fortification. The workshop featured expert sessions, interactive discussions, and field visits to flour and edible oil mills, providing journalists with practical knowledge and first-hand exposure to fortification processes. These activities aimed at enhancing journalists' capacity for accurate, evidence-based reporting on the subject and underscored the broader role of informed media in raising public awareness, promoting best practices, and supporting sustainable food fortification across the province.
Malnutrition remains a major public health challenge in Pakistan. Punjab, one of the country’s most populous provinces, faces high rates of stunting, wasting, and anaemia among children, as well as widespread micronutrient deficiencies among women of reproductive age.
According to Nutrition International’s Cost of Inaction Tool, the economic burden of malnutrition in Pakistan is estimated at over $17 billion (Rs4.76 trillion) annually, due to productivity losses, increased healthcare costs, and reduced cognitive potential in children.
According to the Multiple Indicator Cluster Survey (MICS) 2018, in Punjab, 31.5% of children under five suffer from stunting, 7.5% from wasting, and 21.2% are underweight, while 42.2% of women and 52% of children under five are affected by anaemia. Food fortification, the addition of essential micronutrients such as iron, folic acid, and vitamins A and D to commonly consumed staples like wheat flour, edible oil, and salt, is globally recognised as a highly cost-effective public health intervention.
Every dollar invested in fortification can generate an average return of $27 for every dollar invested, through disease prevention, improved productivity, and enhanced lifetime earnings.In Pakistan, fortifying a 20-kg bag of wheat flour costs approximately Rs20, and one kilogram of edible oil costs about Rs0.75, making it an affordable intervention with wide population reach.
During the discussion session, participants highlighted that Sindh, Balochistan, and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa have enacted mandatory fortification measures, and underscored the need for Punjab, home to the country’s largest population and a major producer of wheat flour, to create an enabling policy and regulatory framework to support sustainable food fortification and safeguard the health of a large segment of the population.
Speaking at the workshop, Zameer Haider, Senior Programme Manager, Large Scale Food Fortification, Nutrition International, said, “While many families consume sufficient calories, millions continue to suffer from hidden hunger — deficiencies in essential vitamins and minerals that weaken immunity, impair cognitive development, and reduce economic productivity.
