VitaMin Premix Supplier Assessment 2025

Micronutrient deficiencies—often referred to as hidden hunger—affect more than five billion people globally, contributing to poor health, impaired cognitive development, and reduced economic productivity.

Large-scale food fortification (LSFF)—the addition of vitamins and minerals (fortificants) to widely consumed staple foods and condiments—is a proven, cost-effective strategy to address these deficiencies, delivering high returns on investment.

Despite global progress in large-scale food fortification, many fortified foods fail to meet national standards. Governments play a critical role in enforcing and monitoring these regulations, but industry players—including micronutrient and premix producers—are equally important in strengthening the fortification value chain.

Fortificant producers not only play a vital role in delivering high-quality fortificants (i.e. micronutrients and premix blends), they also have numerous opportunities to support better practices and advance the global nutrition agenda.

Read the Executive Summary here
Read the Full Report here
Read the Methodology here

ATNi’s VitaMin Premix Supplier Assessment 2025 (VitaMin Assessment) provides a first-of-its kind evaluation of the nutrition policies and practices of the world’s 11 largest producers of fortificants, extending corporate accountability further up the value chain.

Together, the 11 assessed companies supply the majority of fortificants used in LSFF globally, including vitamin A, iron, folic acid and zinc, nutrients of public health concern.

Country case studies from India and Kenya provide further insights into how producers can strengthen the fortification value chain.

How do fortificant producers integrate nutrition into their core business strategy?

• Of the 11 companies, two producers—dsm-firmenich and Hexagon—have integrated nutrition into their core business strategies with measurable goals.
• Six other producers acknowledge their role in addressing public health nutrition challenges; however, lacking specific, time-bound, and measurable commitments.
• Implementation mechanisms are unclear—documentation and disclosure can be strengthened for all companies.
• 9 of the 11 fortificant producers were found to market their products for fortifying a range of foods, including soft drinks, cookies, snacks and confectioneries. None however commit to prioritizing fortificants sales for healthier products, as defined by national and international public health authorities.

Engagement with Customers and Distributors

How do fortificant producers support customers and guide distributors?

• Seven companies provide some form of technical assistance to customers—such as customization, innovation, capacity building, testing, and instructions on the appropriate handling, storage, and use of the supplied fortificants. However, none demonstrate a structured framework with measurable objectives to guide this support and ensure high quality end-product outcomes.
• Four companies—BASF, dsm-firmenich, Hexagon, and Zhejiang NHU—extend handling and storage guidelines to distributors, though these are not explicitly linked to formal agreements and do not reference recognized guidelines. Two other companies—Mirpain Supplevit and Sudeep—mentioned related procedures but did not provide supporting evidence.

How do fortificant producers contribute to broader fortification efforts?

• Five companies provide technical assistance to millers beyond direct customer base. dsm-firmenich and Hexagon offer structured support, with dsm-firmenich linking efforts to measurable targets, enhancing accountability.
• Broader collaborative fortification efforts—such as supporting the implementation of regulations, subsidizing premix, or donating equipment—were also identified for five companies (BASF, dsm-firmenich, Hexagon, SternVitamin/Mühlenchemie, and Zhejiang NHU). However, limited disclosure of the planned activities, their scope and objectives makes it difficult to assess the implementation and impact of these efforts.

Workforce Nutrition

What kind of nutrition interventions do fortificant producers offer for their employees?

• Five companies—BASF, dsm-firmenich, Glanbia, Hexagon, and SternVitamin/Mühlenchemie—disclosed initiatives aligned with at least one workforce nutrition pillar (healthy food at work, nutrition education programmes, nutrition-focused health checks, and breastfeeding support, including parental leave)
• BASF and dsm-firmenich were found to offer parental leave beyond legal requirements in some countries.
• None of the assessed companies offer a comprehensive workforce nutrition programme or policy that covers all four pillars. Most do not disclose whether support is provided consistently to all employees and across all worksite locations.

Based on interviews with over 40 stakeholders—including fortificant suppliers, food producers, government representatives, and development partners—the findings from these case studies highlight both opportunities and challenges for fortificant producers.

Key Insights:

• Fortificant producers play a pivotal role in supporting effective fortification, especially through technical assistance, quality assurance, and tailored packaging for smaller food producers.

• Small and medium-sized fortificant producers face major barriers that limit the effectiveness and reach of food fortification efforts, including weak regulatory enforcement, limited technical capacity, supply chain disruptions, and unregulated pricing practices.

• Larger fortificant producers can play a key role in food fortification by:
  

– Improving Accessibility to Fortificants: Larger global producers collaborate with local distributors and partners to expand market reach, offer smaller packaging options, and ensure product quality during transport. These efforts make fortificants more available and affordable across diverse market segments.

– Enabling Effective Fortification: Local suppliers provide hands-on support, including training, lab access, and free product quality checks, helping food producers, particularly smaller-sized enterprises, adopt and maintain effective fortification practices.

• Stakeholders in the wider value chain also have a critical role in supporting food fortification—food producers can drive demand for higher-quality fortificants

This report will be published in October 2025.

Fortificant Producers:

• Safeguard fortificant quality across the value chain (beyond production).
• Strengthen fortification through structured efforts and partnerships, with clear goals and robust monitoring frameworks to deliver tailored support.
• Disclose the scope, objectives, and outcomes of fortification supporting activities, emphasizing measurable achievements.
• Foster peer learning and innovation in fortification-through initiatives such as Millers for Nutrition.

Governments and Policymakers:

• Harmonize micronutrient and premix standards, testing, and fortification practices, and develop clear guidance to support compliance.
• Strengthen monitoring and enforcement mechanisms by integrating fortification into existing food safety systems, implementing secure digital traceability across supply chains, and mandating industry reporting on key fortification practices.
• Reduce the costs of fortification by removing import taxes and tariffs on fortificants, providing subsidies, and benchmarking fortificant prices.

Investors:

Allocate capital to fortificant producers who demonstrate leadership in quality, transparency, and public health impact by:

• Conducting and disclosing independent audits of quality control systems; 
• Supplying fortificants that comply with national standards and regulations; 
• Applying consistent practices across markets aligned with global guidelines; and  
• Ensuring affordability and accessibility in high-need markets.  

The VitaMin Corporate Profile methodology builds on ATNi’s previous benchmarks and was adapted to focus on food fortification, specifically to evaluate companies operating at the upstream end of the fortification value chain. 

• Company selection of the 11 largest global fortificant producers was based on criteria such as active supply for LSFF, significant presence in LMICs, global reach, and GAIN Premix Facility (GPF) certification.
• The Corporate Profile evaluates companies across four thematic categories: Commercial Nutrition Strategy, Engagement with Customers and Distributors, Nutrition-Sensitive Activities, and Workforce Nutrition.
• The Corporate Profile methodology is designed to assess whether commitments, policies and practices are disclosed and apply in all markets in which the companies are active. Companies are assessed on practices that go beyond regulatory compliance.
• The VitaMin Assessment is unscored—it provides a baseline of current nutrition practices among the world’s largest fortificant producers. 
• The VitaMin Assessment does not cover fortificant testing.

The country case studies from India and Kenya were chosen for their contrasting fortification environments and to provide insight into practical implementation of national fortification measures and the roles played by fortificant suppliers, food producers, and regulatory agencies. 

This component of the VitaMin Assessment relied on desk research and key informant interviews with over 40 stakeholders—including fortificant suppliers, food producers, government representatives, and development partners.

The findings of the VitaMin Assessment are intended not only to guide industry efforts but also to inform policymakers, investors, and civil society—who have an important role in enabling and incentivizing responsible business practices that improve public health outcomes, and fostering accountability across both the business-to-business and business-to-consumer sector.

Read the Methodology