I loved the original article, and (spoiler) it pretty much turned out to be what was posited but they're not sure why the iron levels were low. In the way these things usually go, they decided destroying the withheld US stocks was cheaper than shipping it elsewhere for sale or (illegally?) feeding the needy.
I'm wondering though, is fortification/enrichment in staples widespread? The US seems to do it a lot, but I checked in Australia and I can find only 2 cases of mandatory fortification[0] - Vitamin D for oil spreads (e.g. margarine) and vitamin B1 and folic acid for bread flour, and iodised salt in the bread. I suppose you can also include fluoridated tap water as fortification. I don't have either of those foods that often so hopefully I'm getting these nutrients elsewhere.
Illegally feeding the needy could well get your certifications to produce food revoked. Food is highly regulated, and by more agencies than I would have guessed. Food and Drug Administration, US Department of Agriculture (meat and eggs), plus various state agencies.
Rather than going to a landfill, they may have been delivered to a farm as food for pigs, but I imagine opening hundreds of thousands of boxes wouldn't be economically viable.
I work in food manufacturing. The opinions are my own and do not represent my employer.
Disclosures are never an issue until they are, by someone who feels you were disingenuous in the discussion, or your current/former employer has a problem with what you said.
I don't throw the disclosure on every single comment, but it's stated on my profile, and I do commonly add it when discussing industries I've been involved with.
I see the disclosures here fairly frequently and rather appreciate the forthrightness because they’re reminders of the ethos here and they also give a perspective and context to the rest of the comment.
Sorry for the meta thread, also interested in the answer to the root comment here about food fortification.
Studies have suggested that vitamin supplements may not do a great job at improving health outcomes.
I wonder how adding vitamins and minerals to food compares to taking a supplement with and without a meal in terms of vitamin and miner absorption rates?
I'm wondering though, is fortification/enrichment in staples widespread? The US seems to do it a lot, but I checked in Australia and I can find only 2 cases of mandatory fortification[0] - Vitamin D for oil spreads (e.g. margarine) and vitamin B1 and folic acid for bread flour, and iodised salt in the bread. I suppose you can also include fluoridated tap water as fortification. I don't have either of those foods that often so hopefully I'm getting these nutrients elsewhere.
0: https://www.foodstandards.gov.au/consumer/nutrition/vitamina...