Direct supplementation is often the best method to immediately counteract the effects of anemia. But supplementation alone on a long-term basis is seldom recommended as the sole course of treatment -- dietary rectification is usually required for sustained improvement. Food -- based strategies can include the introduction of iron-rich foods. But in many nations these types of foods may be poorly available, especially iron-rich meat. Iron fortification of foods is another realistic method for reducing the prevalence of deficiency through consumption. In industrialized countries such as America, breakfast cereals and nutritional bars and shakes are regularly supplemented with iron. The choice of breads and other carbohydrates as the vehicle of iron is deliberate, given that flour-based goods and grains like breads and cereals are "frequently consumed, staple foods. Bread is a particularly useful vehicle as the risk for organoleptic deterioration due to the pro-oxidative properties of iron is lower compared to other foods with a higher lipid content and longer shelf life" (Huma 2009). On a whole, "this has had an important beneficial effect; however, nutritional anemia remains very prevalent in developing countries and iron fortification appears until recently to have had little impact. Two important reasons for the latter situation are inadequate documentation of the magnitude of the iron deficiency component of anemia in different regions of the world, and the use of iron compounds that are poorly bioavailable...

Poor political leadership is another reason for a lack of fortification initiatives in the developing world. Unlike the United States' FDA, a "lack of a centralized source of food processing and distribution limits the feasibility of fortification. Even though the cost of fortification is relatively small as compared to the cost of production and processing, the food industry does not assume responsibility for improving the nutrition of its products without a legislative mandate, proper advocacy, and linkage between the health sector and industry" which is often lacking in the developing world (Huma 2007).
Fewer individuals in the developing world consume processed and prepackaged goods, and while there are many problems associated with this dietary pattern in the developed world, one of the positive benefits of this aspect of the Western diet is that many iron-rich products are consumed, as a direct result of government-mandated fortification programs. Despite resistance to tampering with food, in the case of the developing world, some fortification and supplementation may mean the difference between life and death, or at least a high-quality life and one of anemia vs. A failure to thrive. Finding ways to fortify staple goods of the developing world with iron, ideally with 20-40% the daily requirement in every serving to prevent the dangers of overconsumption, and to do so without tampering with the savory quality of the taste of the item, is an important goal…