Advocacy Advances the Conversation to Fortify Wheat Flour in Türkiye

Photo: Jessie Genoway, FFI Communications Director, presents the opportunity for wheat flour fortification in Türkiye at the IAOM Eurasia Conference. (Eylem Ocal/GAPSBiF)

FFI staff officially restarted its efforts to explore and advance wheat flour fortification opportunities in Türkiye with a trip to Istanbul and Ankara in September 2023. As part of the trip, FFI met with public, private, and civic partners from the Turkish Ministry of Agriculture, the International Association of Operative Millers (IAOM) Eurasia Chapter, the Turkish Spina Bifida Association (TSBA), and UNICEF.

While in Ankara, FFI and the president of TSBA met with the head of the Department of Food Establishments and Codex at the Türkiye Ministry of Agriculture. They discussed the need and opportunity for mandatory wheat flour fortification, emphasizing the importance of preventing birth defects of the brain and spine through such interventions, and addressed the government's questions. FFI committed to conducting further research and completing a cost-benefit analysis to help the government weigh the financial cost and the sizable benefit of fortification.

Photo: Simit, a type of bread made with wheat flour, in Istanbul, Türkiye. (Jessie Genoway/FFI)

FFI met with UNICEF Turkey's Early Childhood Development team and the nutrition specialist at the UNICEF Europe and Central Asia Regional Office. Both expressed interest in engaging with FFI and other partners to help build a national wheat flour fortification. UNICEF’s Europe and Central Asia Regional Office also offered to connect FFI with other country offices in the region that might need technical assistance on food fortification.

The trip concluded with FFI's participation in the IAOM Eurasia Conference in Istanbul. On the conference’s main stage, Jessie Genoway, FFI Communications Director, presented the opportunity for wheat flour fortification in Turkey along with former TSBA and International Federation for Spina Bifida and Hydrocephalus Board Member Papatya Alkan Genca, who presented her lived experience of spina bifida in Türkiye. IAOM Eurasia sponsored a booth for FFI, where representatives from FFI, the International Federation for Spina Bifida and Hydrocephalus, and the Global Alliance for Prevention of Spina Bifida, shared communication materials and met with IAOM members from the region, including millers from Ukraine, Uzbekistan, and Türkiye.  

The trip to Türkiye marked a significant step forward in FFI's mission to advance wheat flour fortification. Through strategic meetings and engagements, FFI was able to build a network of public, private, and civic sector champions for fortification, share knowledge, and lay the groundwork for a healthy, fortified future in the country.