Fortifying foods is the addition of nutrients, such as macronutrients (carbohydrate, protein and fat) and/or micronutrients (vitamins and minerals) to an everyday food to improve nutritional quality and provide a health benefit.
It is common practice for food manufacturers to add micronutrients (i.e. vitamins and minerals) into their food products. Some examples of fortified foods (or foods that may contain fortified nutrients) include milk, salt, bread, spreads, breakfast cereals and supplementary foods and drinks.
Additionally, we may ourselves fortify the nutrient content of home prepared meals we regularly eat by the addition of healthy oils, concentrated protein and carbohydrates to foods familiar to the family.
Ideally when fortifying a food item the amount of food eaten does not increase very much at all, as the fat and protein added is in a concentrated form. For example, the protein fortifier is generally a refined protein powder and the oil component a healthy and tasteless plant based oil. This is important as many people at risk of malnutrition are unable to eat large quantities of foods and smaller concentrated meal items are better tolerated.
For some who may be underweight or have increased nutritional needs (possibly due to the consequences of a permanent disability, acute illness or chronic disease), additional calories in the form of a high energy and high protein diet may be required to keep them well nourished. Simply adding additional ingredients to meals, for example, butter or grated cheese and cream to scrambled eggs or mashed potatoes, can help bulk up the nutrient content of meals without the person having to eat increased amounts of food to get the same nutritional advantage.
What makes The Pure Food Co.’s meals different?
Very few other texture modified fortified foods in New Zealand and Australia have been developed specifically to meet the needs of the adult palate.
All The Pure Food Co.’s products are IDDSI-compliant, developed following significant research to meet the needs of individuals who are at risk of malnutrition due to swallowing problems or mechanical difficulties in eating normal food.
Our texture modified fortified meals contain more energy and more protein than comparable dishes.
Summary
Food fortification overcomes the barriers to individuals accessing a range of nutrients which may be a lower concentration in normal meals, when the form of nutrient is not easily absorbed or when a certain public health issue needs to be addressed with food fortification. The Pure Food Co range is nutrient dense, ensuring that every bite counts.
Consuming fortified foods is an easy solution and supports a normalised approach to meeting increased nutrient needs and improving health. It fills in nutrient gaps that may be present in the individual’s normal eating pattern, reducing the need to eat additional amounts of foods to obtain the same nutritional benefit.
The Pure Food Co. has developed a nutritional system for healthier and tastier aging. Learn more about the texture modified meal solutions we offer.
