DUSHANBE (Radio Ozodi) — On June 7, the Parliament of Tajikistan passed the law “Providing the population with enriched food”. By law, the production, import and sale of unenriched flour and other food products are now prohibited in the country.

According to Radio Ozodi (رادیو آزادی), the main objective of the law’s adoption is to prevent the import of low-grade flour into the Republic.

Kazakhstan remains the main supplier of flour and wheat to the Tajik market. According to Tajik MPs, flour, which is banned for sale on Kazakh territory, is sold on Tajik markets at an inflated price, and the consumption of bread from this flour would have serious health consequences.

Deputy Sharif Rahimzoda critically assessed the current situation in the country with flour: “Flour made in Kazakhstan, which we buy, is banned in Kazakhstan itself because, by decree of the President of this country, the sale of flour enriched with vitamins and microelements is allowed”, he said during the session. According to him, food enrichment is important for public health, living standards and economic development in the country.

“The health of the population depends on vitamins and trace minerals that are important to the human body. If you have noticed that today, on the streets of the city, most young people are short, even below me, even though during my school years, I ranked third or fourth of the end. And all because today’s young people do not have the necessary micronutrients”, said the MP.

Mirzomuddin Kamolzoda, Deputy Minister of Health and Population Welfare of Tajikistan, said flour enrichment could contribute to the prevention of anaemia and nutritional deficiencies.

Experts claim that an iron deficiency in bakery products retards the intellectual and physical development of children, alters women’s reproductive function and leads to maternal mortality.