Nutrition in Indonesia

Malnutrition and Fortification Issues

Indonesia is currently facing nutrition security and food safety problems. Although production of major food commodities, as well as rice as main staple food has grown, Indonesia is still strongly dependent on imports for some commodities. Approximately 25 million Indonesians consume less than 70% of the recommended dietary allowance of 2,000 kcal/capita/day.

The diet of Indonesians is also unbalanced, with a high contribution of rice and wheat to total energy intake. More than 100 million Indonesian peoples are currently face micronutrient deficiencies, including iron, vitamin A, and iodine deficiency.

Micronutrient insufficient is a contributing factor to morbidity and mortality rates of women and children. In Indonesia, according to national data that one out of every three children under the age of five suffers from malnutrition and one in every five is underweigh.

Children born with iron deficiency have been estimated to lose the potential of at least 10 IQ points compared to those born without iron deficiencies. Globally, at least 40 million children are affected by vitamin A deficiency which poses a Public Health risk or crisis, because the extent and health consequences of this micronutrient deficiency. 

The malnutrition problem is due to macronutrient deficiencies. At present Indonesia is also facing the so-called "hidden hunger" of micronutrient deficiencies. The major problems include vitamin A deficiency, iodine deficiency disorders, and iron deficiency anemia. More than 100 million Indonesians are affected by these problems (Departemen Kesehatan, 2008)

According to the World Bank (2006), a cost-effective strategy of food fortification is now available to control micro nutrient deficiencies. Indonesia has implemented a food fortification strategy. Reffereng on it, food fortification is a way to combating and preventing Public Health risk or crisis arising from micronutrient malnutrition. These key intervention strategies can be used to shift at-risk groups from a state of risk or crisis to a state of nutrient sufficiency and health.

Food fortification is the process by which a nutrient is added to a commonly eaten food to improve the quality of a population’s diet. It includes the addition of nutrients at levels higher than those found in the original or in comparable foods. The food that carries the nutrient is referred to as the food vehicle and the nutrient added is the fortificant. Food fortification is usually undertaken when there is a widespread and consistent nutritional deficit in the population's diet, and has been commonly used as a method to control micronutrient deficiencies.

Indonesia has implemented a food fortification strategy, particularly to control iodine deficiency disorders through a mandatory salt iodization program and iron deficiency anemia through mandatory wheat flour fortification with iron and folic acid (Soekirman, 2008). A pilot project of fortifying cooking oil with vitamin A has been undertaken as well (Martianto et al., 2008).

The most important which has been described above is how to initiate rice fortification become rice based nutrition for poor people, since rice as the main staple food of mostly population in Indonesia.

Rice in Indonesia context, from the research into the consumers served