Folic acid out, but iodine in

Folic acid may be out, but iodine will soon be a mandatory addition to New Zealand bread.

Prime Minister John Key said yesterday that the Cabinet had agreed to a proposal to delay the implementation of the mandatory addition of folic acid to bread until a review in May 2012.

The decision follows an outcry from bakers and the public over a joint food standard with Australia signed by the previous Labour government.

The Cabinet's decision completes a U-turn by the Government. Two weeks ago, Food Safety Minister Kate Wilkinson said bread fortification would proceed, despite concerns over potential health risks.

Mandatory inclusion of iodine in all bread except organic varieties will start in September.

Under the food standard, New Zealand bakers must replace the use of non-iodised salt with iodised salt, while iodine, thiamin and folic acid, will be added to wheat flour in Australia.

Food Standards Australia New Zealand agreed to the mandatory addition of iodine to bread last year. The decision was not widely publicised and has been lost in the row over folic acid.

Iodine, a trace mineral necessary to help the thyroid gland function properly, is already added to table salt, but bakers generally use non-iodised salt because it is cheaper.

Bakers decided not to fight the move, concentrating on folic acid instead.

Key said National believed in freedom of choice and personal responsibility "as a general rule".

"But there are additives to food that will occur on a mandatory basis," he said.

"Where there is mass benefit and widespread community acceptance and the science supports it, National would support those actions."

The Government will spend three weeks consulting with the public over whether to put folic acid in bread, despite having decided not to introduce it.

The options presented will be status quo, complete revocation of the food standard or deferral.

Wilkinson said a discussion document proposing the delay would be released tomorrow and that a final decision had not been made.

"The proposal aims to give us more time to evaluate the risks and benefits of the standard and to take into account the wishes of New Zealanders," she said.

The Press understands the Government is going ahead with the consultation process because it is concerned legal action could be taken by proponents of folic acid fortification if it did not.

Bakers Association president Laurie Powell said he planned to call a "bread summit" to propose positive industry initiatives.

After the summit, bakers would invite groups such as Parents of Children with Spina Bifida to help in the development of a voluntary plan to fortify a range of breads, he said.

- © Fairfax NZ News