Iodine Fortification for the Development of Functional Foods

Major staple crops contain insufficient concentrations of many essential elements to meet the Recommended Dietary Allowance (RDA); therefore, nutrient fortification of the food supply could represent a valuable practice to integrate diet. Iodine is an essential microelement for human health, and the Iodine Deficiency Disorders (IDD) are believed to be one of the commonest human health problems, therefore the natural iodine fortification of vegetable, by means of irrigation water, can be a part of a strategy of functional food constitution. This study was conducted in order to determine the accumulation of iodine in tomato and peach fruits, as well as in potato tubers, by means of fertirrigation. The experiments aim to establish a field protocol for incorporating iodine into the above mentioned food crops, avoiding any detrimental effects on yields. Plants, in field conditions, were irrigated with potassium iodide in different concentrations, in 2007, and in 2008 in Italy. Iodine concentrations were analyzed by means of ICP-MS in fruits and tubers, after treatments, after harvest at commercial maturity, and after a storage period