Bakers agree to folic acid

The baking industry will move towards voluntarily fortifying a wider range of breads with folic acid, and supports a marketing campaign for pregnant women, Association of Bakers' president Laurie Powell says.

The industry held a summit yesterday, before the Government's expected announcement tomorrow that it will delay a requirement for bakers to add folic acid to bread.

The previous Government had signed an agreement for the mandatory addition of folic acid to all bread.

But the present Government made it clear it preferred a three-year deferral of the agreement.

Folic acid has been shown to reduce the risk of birth defects such as spina bifida, but bakers say women would need to eat at least 11 slices of bread a day to make a difference.

There was unanimous support at the summit yesterday for a movement towards the voluntary fortification of a wider range of breads targeted at women of childbearing age.

There was also unanimous support for a marketing campaign to raise awareness of the importance of optimum folate levels for pregnant women.

Mr Powell said the industry would now develop a draft plan.

- NZPA