Should nutritional profiles of bakery foods be considered when formulating an added vitamin/mineral premix?
Certainly. The Nutrition Facts panel of a food states the total content of the various line items—not just the added nutrients. If a bakery food provides a certain percentage of the DV of each nutrient, ADM formulates the vitamin/mineral premix to supplement those levels. ADM also compensates for any losses that may occur during fermentation, baking and market storage because the panel must reflect the values for the product as sold and consumed. Once formulation is complete, a test bake and finished product assay is done to ascertain that the expected values of each nutrient actually are achieved. Frequently, the premix formula will be tweaked to ensure the final values are right. What is the cost of fortification? Basic enrichment of flour and bread to comply with the standards of identity for enriched wheat flour and enriched white bread should cost less than 10 cents per 100 lbs. of flour. Higher levels of fortification for non-standardized bakery foods can cost as much as 2 cents
