Scaling up the production and distribution of double-fortified salt in India
Programs and partnerships
Lead institution(s)
Summary
After a decade of laboratory and pilot plant work in Canada and India, a cost-effective, double-fortified salt formulation has been successfully tested for efficacy and use in the field.Read more
After a decade of laboratory and pilot plant work in Canada and India, a cost-effective, double-fortified salt formulation has been successfully tested for efficacy and use in the field. Building on the success of universal salt iodization, which reaches 5 billion people globally, this salt enables regular, sustained intake of iron in addition to iodine. It recently received regulatory approval in India. This project will adapt and transfer the technology from Canada to India. It will take to scale the manufacture and distribution of a shelf-stable salt, double-fortified with iron and iodine. It will generate new knowledge and innovation to improve the diets of up to 15 million rural poor (predominantly those engaged in agriculture) in the state of Uttar Pradesh. The technology will be specifically tailored to existing manufacturing capabilities, ensuring sustainability and adherence to quality standards beyond the project period. By the end of 28 months, the new salt product will be supplied in 10 districts in Uttar Pradesh through fair price shops under the public distribution system. Lower-income populations will be targeted. The team will work to reduce the cost of production and transfer it to private sector food processors in India. Public and private sector models, based on consumer response and policy dialogue, will be developed for continued and expanded availability of the salt throughout India, where 800 million people consume salt on a daily basis. This project is funded under the Canadian International Food Security Research Fund (CIFSRF), a program of IDRC undertaken with the financial support of the Government of Canada provided through Global Affairs Canada (formerly Foreign Affairs, Trade and Development Canada).