TABLE 2.

Percentage of Country-Grain Combinationsa With Documented Items in Fortification Legislation, Standards, and Monitoring Documents (N=72)

ItemEligible (N)% (n) Fully Meeting% (n) Partly Meeting% (n) Not Meeting
General
1. Food vehicle stated in legislation7297% (70)3% (2)
2. Public health objective/purpose7269% (50)31% (22)
3. Accepted international norms7254% (39)46% (33)
4. Definitions specific to fortification7276% (55)24% (17)
5. Repeals of prior documentationb5971% (42)29% (17)
6. Effective date/grace period7272% (52)28% (20)
Micronutrients/Premix
7. Nutrients required72100% (72)0% (0)
8. Fortificants (chemical compounds)7288% (63)13% (9)
9. Fortification levels7242% (30)54% (39)4% (3)
10. Bioavailability of fortificants7231% (22)69% (50)
11. Nutrient stability7254% (39)46% (33)
Costing
12. Cost sharing of fortification7219% (14)81% (58)
13. Financial responsibility of monitoring and enforcement7235% (25)65% (47)
Labeling
14. Labeling required7278% (56)22% (16)
15. Guidance on health claims7250% (36)50% (36)
Internal Monitoring (conducted by industry during production)
16. Sampling process outlinedb3171% (22)29% (9)0% (0)
17. Industry QA/QC justified/required7264% (46)36% (26)
18. Applicability of qualitative tests7229% (21)1% (1)69% (50)
External Monitoring (conducted by government at production sites)
19. External monitoring justified7264% (46)36% (26)
20. Protocols and systems described7233% (24)28% (20)39% (28)
21. Roles and responsibilities clarifiedb5645% (25)7% (4)48% (27)
22. Timeline for inspections outlined7226% (19)13% (9)61% (44)
23. Sampling process outlinedb4567% (30)33% (15)0% (0)
24. Applicability of qualitative tests7219% (14)1% (1)79% (57)
25. Registration requirements7238% (27)63% (45)
Commercial Monitoring (conducted by government at market or distribution sites)
26. Commercial monitoring justified7247% (34)53% (38)
27. Protocols and systems described7219% (14)21% (15)60% (43)
28. Roles and responsibilities clarifiedb6332% (20)0% (0)68% (43)
29. Timeline for inspections outlinedb4414% (6)25% (11)61% (27)
30. Sampling process outlinedb2871% (20)29% (8)0% (0)
Import Monitoring (conducted by government at ports/points of entry)
31. Import monitoring justified7264% (46)36% (26)
32. Protocols and systems described7235% (25)26% (19)39% (28)
33. Roles and responsibilities clarifiedb5942% (25)2% (1)56% (33)
34. Sampling process outlinedb2962% (18)38% (11)0% (0)
Enforcement/Penalties
35. Enforcement roles and responsibilities clarified7269% (50)31% (22)
36. Incentives to start fortification7214% (10)86% (62)
37. Incentives to continue fortification7210% (7)90% (65)
38. Penalties to compel compliance7268% (49)32% (23)
39. Penalties objectively definedb4931% (15)69% (34)
40. Enforcement includes feedback7218% (13)82% (59)
Laboratory
41. Analytical methods identified7260% (43)40% (29)
42. Recognition of laboratory variation7211% (8)89% (64)
43. Quantitative analysis of "marker" micronutrients such as iron7236% (26)64% (46)
Reporting
44. Dissemination of monitoring results described7231% (22)69% (50)
  • Abbreviations: QA/QC, quality assurance/quality control.

  • a Country-grain combination refers to the unit of analysis; countries that mandate the fortification of multiple cereal grains will contribute more than one country-grain combination (e.g., Philippines-wheat and Philippines-rice).

  • b The number eligible differs for these items due to a “not applicable” option on the scoring checklist.