| Group Composition |
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| Current Research Programme |
- The Food Safety and Nutrition Group (FSN) of the Food and Nutrition Division (FND), NIFA, undertakes research to improve food safety and nutritional quality. Its activities include development of rapid testing methods, extraction and characterization of natural bioactive compounds and provision of analytical services. The group supports research organizations, academia, industry and the community through laboratory testing and technical assistance.
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| Tangible Achievements |
- Developed Rapid Test Kits (RTKs) for qualitative determination of Fortified micronutrients
- a) Iron as Fe+3 in wheat flour,
- b) Vitamin A as retinol in edible oils/fats
- c) Iodine as KIO3 in salt and
- d) Peroxide Value (POV) to check rancidity in edible oils/fats)
- Provision of analytical services (63 parameters) in water, edible oils, juices, squashes, syrups, honey, salt, flour etc.
- Achieved ISO/IEC 17025:2017 accreditation in 2023 from Pakistan National Accreditation Council (PNAC), Islamabad for Food Testing Laboratory and maintained accreditation through continued compliance with the standard
- Lab has qualified total 4 Proficiency Testings from Turkak as per EU regulations for standardization and validation of test methods to achieve continued ISO/IEC-17025
- Fortification of micronutrient e.g. Iron in roller milled wheat flour and vitamin A in vanaspati ghee to combat malnutrition among vulnerable Pakistani population
- Utilization of dried citrus peel (an agro-waste) in poultry ration
- Radiation decontamination of commercial poultry feed
- Iodine stability study in different climatic conditions and different packaging materials
- Developed eco-friendly and cost-effective zero energy cooling chambers (ZECC) and disseminated the technology to small scale farmers
- Identified and characterized lactic acid bacterial strains (NIFA-1, NIFA-2 and NIFA-3) to develop bio preservatives, probiotic yoghurt and lactic cheese
- Developed and disseminated Meals Ready-to-Eat (MRE) technology to support sustainable local production, reduce import dependence and save foreign exchange
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| Group R&D Objectives |
- To develop technologies for improvement of food safety, nutritional quality and shelf life
- To develop rapid analytical methods and spot test kits for detecting food adulteration, assessing food and water quality, nutritional composition and added nutrients
- To strengthen analytical services, laboratory competence and collaboration with academia and industry to promote technology commercialization and institutional income generation
- To maintain ISO/IEC 17025:2017 accreditation through proficiency testing, in-house method validation and continual improvement of the quality management system
- To extract and characterize natural bioactive compounds for food and agricultural applications
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