FortifyingThe Future
Our mission is to alleviate iron deficiency by designing innovative high-iron, plant-based foods and supplements using our biofortified crop varieties
Iron Deficiency
Iron is the world’s most common micronutrient deficiency. Even in Western countries, conservative estimates of iron deficiency suggest that at least 5% of the population isn’t getting enough iron, particularly among women, children and the elderly.
Common symptoms of iron anaemia include tiredness, weakness and headaches, leading to people being chronically unwell.
The Need For Nutrient-Enhanced Crops
85 countries mandate that at least one kind of cereal grain is fortified with iron, and the most common treatment for iron deficiency is iron tablets- while cheap, these chemical forms of iron are poorly bioavailable, and iron deficiency still persists in our society.
Many people suffer side effects from supplementation, sometimes so severely that they choose to leave their iron deficiency untreated.
At HiFeed we provide science-led, sustainable solutions to iron deficiency shaped by YOU.
Please get in touch to help shape our products!
Mineral Quantification & Iron Characterisation
Iron Supplement Survey
HiFe: A Innovative Source of Iron
How We're Tackling Iron Deficiency
For over 20 years, Janneke Balk has been researching iron uptake and metabolism in plants and humans. We’ve found a way to deliver plant-based iron sources that are both bioavailable and non-toxic.
Our first products are derived from our HiFe pea plants, which have 20-30 times the iron of a traditional pea variety.
Our technology allows us to make supplements or plant based foods that are significantly enriched with iron; to begin with we will be utilising our pea plants, but our vision is to make high-iron alternatives of other crops in the future, so that there is a biofortified alternative for everyone!