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nutritional quality of manufactured food products that are used as the sole source of nourishment, e.g.
infant formulas or formulated liquid diets and weaning foods, and (4) To ensure nutritional equivalency of
manufactured food products substituting other foods, e.g. fortified margarine as a substitute for butter.
Food Fortification Techniques
Micronutrients may be added to foods in several ways, the simplest of which is using a mixing
procedure. As in any mixing process, the goal of fortification aside from achieving the correct levels of
fortificant in the fortified product is to obtain a homogenous distribution of at least one component in
another component with different physical and/or chemical properties.
Different addition methods have been developed depending on the type of products to be mixed
and the type of equipment used. Lotfi et al. (1996) mentioned that the mixing procedure for solids is
much more complicated than for liquids as the process is influenced primarily by particle size
distribution, particle shape and density of the components. Following are the different methods of adding
the fortificant depending on the nature of the mixed components:
Solid-solid Mixing
In the solid-solid mixing (dry mixing), the most common method of fortifying dry foods with
small quantities of micronutrients is by dry-blending, either in batches or continuously or a combination
of both. The effectiveness of the mixing procedure generally depends on ingredient properties such as
size, shape, density, hygroscopic and electrostatic properties of the particles and the proportions of the
components being mixed. For uniform mixing and maintenance of mix, homogeneity during processing,
packaging, and storage and distribution, the ingredient properties of all additives should be as close as
possible. The larger the differences, the easier segregation will occur. The commonly used mixers for
this type of mixing are the drum mixers, screw mixers, ribbon blenders and continuous mixers.
Solid-liquid Mixing
In solid-liquid mixing where the fortificant is in liquid form, the fortificant is fed to the food
vehicle by spraying. The fortificant is added in a solution form as an atomized spray. The procedure of
mixing is such that spray nozzles are positioned over a belt conveyor or a screw conveyor or inside a
rotating drum. The “Nauta” mixer and the ribbon blender may be used for mixing liquids into solids by
mounting spray nozzles.
Liquid-liquid Mixing
In liquid or semi-moist foods, the micronutrient is dissolved or dispersed in a liquid vehicle
(water or oil) and subsequently blended or homogenized into the product. Mixing is done in vertical
tanks filled with turbine or propeller agitators. The effectiveness of mixing depends on factors such as
viscosity, flowing characteristics, mixing ability of components and proportion of the components being
mixed.
Vitamin A
Vitamin A is a fat-soluble vitamin that occurs in two principal forms in nature – retinol
(preformed vitamin A), which is found only in animal sources and certain carotenoids (provitamins),
which are found only in plant sources. Vitamin A in the form of retinol or carotene is commercially
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