Industry Leaders Push for Market-Driven Expansion of Fortified Staples to Tackle Hidden Hunger in India

25 May 2026, New Delhi: Industry leaders, policymakers, food processors and nutrition experts have called for stronger collaboration between the private sector and government to accelerate the adoption of fortified staple foods across India as part of efforts to combat micronutrient deficiencies and hidden hunger.

The discussions took place during the National Convening of Staple Food Industry Leaders for Developing a Roadmap on Scaling-Up Staple Food Fortification, organised by TechnoServe through its Millers for Nutrition initiative in association with the CII Food and Agriculture Centre of Excellence.

The convening brought together stakeholders from the edible oil, rice and wheat flour industries to deliberate on commercially scalable and sustainable approaches for increasing the penetration of fortified staple foods in retail and commercial markets.

FSSAI Highlights Simplified Fortification Framework

Addressing the gathering, Food Safety and Standards Authority of India Director (Science & Standards) Shree Rakesh Kumar said the regulatory framework for food fortification had been simplified to encourage greater industry participation.

“FSSAI has been active in making regulations related to food fortification and made them voluntary. We have digitized the process and made it easy for seeking endorsement by those who want to offer fortified food,” Kumar said.

Participants at the event emphasized the importance of building consumer awareness and trust around fortified staples, while also strengthening technical support systems for millers and food processors.

Industry Calls for Consistent Quality Despite Cost Pressures

Mr. Cheran K, CEO of Kaleesuwari Refinery, said the industry must continue prioritising product quality even amid fluctuations in premix prices caused by import dependence.

“Probably as an industry we need to be aware of quality consciousness. Sometimes due to imports dependence, there may be some volatility and increase in prices of pre-mixes, despite that as an industry we need to continue to support fortification,” he said.

Highlighting the growing focus on health-oriented food products, Mr. JT Chary, Managing Director of Mother Dairy Fruit and Vegetables, said nutrition and wellness have become central to product development strategies in the food sector.

“We felt that wellness and nutrition for the citizens of India is most important. So, we thought of adding vitamin A and D in edible oils, and vitamins in other products like milk. We also work towards promoting fortification on our packaging and social media campaigns to increase awareness around this,” Chary said.

Private Sector Seen as Key to Scaling Nutrition Solutions

Senior representatives from government bodies, food companies, millers, nutrition experts and development organisations attended the convening. Among them were Shri Siraj A. Chaudhry, former Co-Chair of the CII National Committee on Nutrition, and Mr. Vidyashankar Satyakumar, Head of Research and Development at AWL Agri Business.

Industry leaders noted that the private sector would play a critical role in integrating nutrition into mainstream packaged food products and developing commercially viable fortification models capable of delivering long-term public health benefits.

Mr. Monojit Indra, Senior Practice Leader at TechnoServe and Program Leader for Millers for Nutrition Asia, said collaborative action across the food ecosystem would be essential to address hidden hunger effectively.

“India has made important progress in advancing staple food fortification, but addressing hidden hunger at scale will require deeper collaboration across the food industry ecosystem. This convening has helped create stronger alignment between industry leaders, development partners and policymakers to accelerate the adoption of fortified staple foods and build sustainable pathways for nutrition impact,” he said.

Mr. Abhishek Shukla, Country Program Manager for Millers for Nutrition India, said the discussions reflected increasing momentum towards market-led nutrition interventions.

“The discussions at the convening reaffirmed that fortification could play a transformative role in strengthening nutrition security in India. The collective commitment demonstrated by stakeholders today reflects a growing momentum towards scaling fortified staples through market-led approaches, industry partnerships and increased consumer awareness,” Shukla said.

Focus on Long-Term Nutrition Security

The convening concluded with participants expressing a shared commitment to deepen cross-sector collaboration, strengthen capacity-building initiatives for millers and food processors, and promote wider adoption of fortified staple foods across India.

Experts at the event stressed that expanding access to fortified staples such as edible oils, rice and wheat flour could become an important pillar in improving nutrition security and reducing micronutrient deficiencies among vulnerable populations in the country.

Also Read: China’s Fertilizer Trade Sees Strong Export Growth in Jan–April 2026, Potash Imports Remain Critical

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