The power of micronutrient innovation to provide health improvement

Ultra Rice® Technology

PATH is an international nonprofit organization whose work focuses on transforming global health through innovation. The organization’s Ultra Rice® technology is designed to be an effective micronutrient delivery system that is culturally appropriate and cost-effective. It uses a warm extrusion process to make rice grains from rice flour fortified with vitamins and minerals, including iron, zinc, thiamin, and folic acid. The extruded grains called Ultra Rice® resemble normal rice in size, shape, and color. When mixed with milled rice, usually at a 1:100 ratio, the fortified rice is nearly identical to traditional rice in smell, taste, and texture. Because the added micronutrients are inside the grains, they are less vulnerable to nutrient loss during preparation and cooking.
In India, a large local miller, Usher Agro, now has the capabilities to produce Ultra Rice®. At the same time, PATH is working within the state systems to widen the distribution of fortified rice within India’s public-sector food programs.
This work encompasses the Public Distribution System, which provides subsidized commodities to families below the poverty line.
In Brazil, Urbano Agroindustrial is one of the country’s largest rice millers. PATH has transferred the Ultra Rice® technology to this miller. In conjunction with the Global Alliance for Improved Nutrition (GAIN), an organization dedicated to fostering private sector investment in adaptation to climate change, PATH and Urbano will be introducing fortified rice through commercial retailers, accompanied by a social marketing campaign to enhance demand for the product.

In Burundi, PATH has partnered with World Vision to distribute fortified rice to children through a school meal program. Supplementing the program, supported by the World Food Program (WFP), with fortified rice aims to improve nutritional status of children who participate. The impact in this country can provide data to support inclusion of Ultra Rice® as an approved commodity for the WFP.
Source: PATH, www.path.org, (June 2012. Ultra Rice® is a registered US trademark of Bon Dente International, Inc.).

NutriRice™ Technology
A similar technology, created by DSM, uses hot extrusion to create fortified rice kernels with encapsulated
micronutrients. As compared to some other fortified rice, these grains look, taste and behave exactly like normal rice, and the embedded nutrients are well protected during washing and cooking. The recomposed, vitamin-and mineral-enriched rice kernels have shown demonstrated success in being incorporated into the usual diet. Those ingesting the fortified rice have also seen improvement in health. In Beijing, the Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention implemented a pilot project wherein they introduced NutriRice™ into a school’s meal plan. The students ate NutriRice™ and vitamin-A-enriched oil and iron-enriched soy sauce for eight months. The students’ nutritional condition was improved, and micronutrient deficiencies were reduced by 50%.
Similarly, in Bangalore, India, schoolchildren aged 6-12 participated in a trial of NutriRice™. After six months, the children who were eating NutriRice™ had improved vitamin B levels, and they experienced improvements in physical performance, particularly pertaining to endurance.
Source: A breakthrough in rice fortification
http://www.dsm.com/en_US/nip/public/home/pages/productsservices-nutririce.jsp

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