What is the fortified food market in Asia Pacific?

| Food fortification is the addition of nutrients to foods to enhance their nutritional value. Foods, beverages, condiments, dairy products and children’s foods are the main vehicles for food fortification in countries all over the world. In recent years, the fortified food market is booming as consumers become more health-conscious.
Today, we are focusing on the fortified food market in the Asia-Pacific region. We hope that this article can bring some inspiration and help to the relevant industry players and readers.
Food Fortification
“Food fortification refers to the addition of nutrients, such as proteins, minerals and vitamins, to enhance the nutritional value of food and beverage products. Groups such as the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) and the World Health Organization (WHO) view food fortification as a key strategy in the fight against global malnutrition. Overall, the food fortification market is booming due to extensive support from government organizations.
Many developing and non-developed countries are taking the lead and making food fortification mandatory. This has contributed to the dramatic growth of the fortified food market across regions.
North America dominates the food fortification market. However, Asia Pacific is witnessing the highest growth rate in fortified food due to rising health concerns and frequent health crises.
Asia Pacific Market
The Asia-Pacific food fortification market is expected to grow at a significant CAGR of more than 18% from 2022 to 2027. Countries like India, Australia, and Vietnam are now mandating fortification of commonly consumed staple foods such as wheat, rice, cooking oil, and milk with vitamins and some minerals such as iron and iodine.
In the Asia-Pacific region, consumption of fortified foods is high in countries such as China, Japan and India, which together account for about 60% of the Asia-Pacific fortified food market share.
The food fortification industry has also emerged as a major player in premixes for ingredients such as vitamins, minerals, proteins, and amino acids. However, the market does face constraints of high raw material and processing costs.
Emerging economies such as China and India are likely to witness a surge in demand for vitamin-enriched food products. These countries are further expanding their fortified food production capacity by increasing the availability of raw materials such as premixes. Apart from these countries, countries such as Vietnam and Australia are also major players in fortified foods both in terms of high consumption and local production.
China
China is the market leader in the Asia-Pacific region with a market share of nearly 25%. China is also the fastest growing market with a strong demand for functional foods and beverages. Most of the people in China suffer from iron and zinc deficiencies, which has led to an increase in the number of people suffering from diseases such as anemia and neural tube defects. At the same time, this in turn is contributing to the growing demand for fortified staple foods such as wheat and rice with added iron, zinc and folic acid.
China is also emerging as a production center for fortified foods, meeting nearly 80% of local demand, including fortified infant and toddler foods.
Research and development opportunities are coming together to fuel the production of fortified foods in China. The Chinese production market is gaining a competitive advantage due to a stable supply chain for raw materials, especially vitamins, which are favored in most food commodities. In addition to supplying premixes in its home market, China is a major exporter of vitamins to most Asian countries such as Japan, Malaysia and Thailand.
China’s food fortification industry and related industries, such as premixes/fortifiers, have received strong support from the government, such as the “Healthy China 2030” strategy.
From a regulatory perspective, China has strict standards for fortified foods, which must be followed by both local manufacturers and importers.
India
India now accounts for 20% of the Asia-Pacific fortified food market, thanks to a booming population and innovative food formats and regulatory support that have boosted the food industry.
In India, food fortification was previously limited to fortification of iodized salt, but with the growing problem of malnutrition among the population, the government has expanded food fortification to include foods such as edible oils, milk and wheat. These staple foods must be fortified with nutrients such as vitamins A and D, folic acid, iron, iodine and vitamin B12. This initiative has given a major boost to the Indian fortified food market as well as the vitamin and mineral premixes market.
India maintains a prominent market share in fortification/premixes. Vitamin premixes containing vitamin C are the most popular, accounting for more than 50% of the overall vitamin consumption in the country.
However, Vitamin B12, Vitamin D and Vitamin B9 are also expected to see significant growth opportunities due to the significant increase in the use of fortification in edible oils, milk and infant formula following the introduction of food fortification requirements by the government in response to malnutrition in children under five years of age.
India can meet its requirements for fortified premixes on its own productivity. It also exports vitamins to Bangladesh, New Zealand, the US and some European countries.
On the regulatory front, India has mandatory fortification requirements for a number of food products. In addition to this, in 2018, India has a special logo – ‘+F’ – for the fortified food category. The logo further gives a specific identity to fortified food companies across India.
Japan.

In Japan, food fortification is usually carried out on foods made from wheat, corn and rice, with nutrients such as folic acid, iron and vitamin A added. The Japanese market accounts for nearly 15% of the Asia-Pacific market, a share that is expected to grow as “health food” becomes more popular in Japan.
On the one hand, Japan meets 60% of its fortified food needs through local production and also exports fortified food to other Asia-Pacific countries such as China.
On the other hand, Japan meets its demand for fortifiers through imports from China. The main demand for these fortifiers (e.g., vitamins B3, E, and C) comes from the dairy and infant formula segments, which are two areas with good growth prospects in Japan.
In terms of regulations, Japan has strict rules regarding the nutritional value of fortified foods and their labeling claims. Although the consumption of fortified food is significant in the country, the market growth in Japan is somewhat hampered by the limited awareness of food fortification in the region and unclear product line segmentation, where fortified food is only categorized as health food.
Other Asia Pacific
Vietnam and Australia are also witnessing growth in demand for fortified food products due to sustainable economic growth, expansion of food industry, and increase in exports.
In Australia, the market growth is mainly driven by the production of nutritionally functional foods and exports to countries such as China, especially fortified dairy products.
In addition to this, a major pillar for the growth of fortified foods in these countries is mandatory fortification requirements for specific food categories. For example, wheat flour used for bread-making must be fortified with folic acid, according to regulatory requirements in Australia. These countries are also witnessing tremendous growth opportunities for fortified foods.
Conclusion
Going forward, the Asia-Pacific market is expected to be self-sufficient in terms of fortified food demand, thanks to its status as a large-scale production center for fortified foods. Extensive government support, progressive localization, and a strong raw material supply chain have combined to strengthen Asia-Pacific’s position in the food fortification sector.
In addition, strong growth in the fortified food industry will be aided by increased consumer awareness of food fortification and its benefits, wider range of fortified products, and increased visibility of products in retail outlets.