Food fortification aims primarily to enhance:

Food fortification is a process that involves adding essential vitamins and minerals to food products in order to improve their overall nutritional quality. The primary aim of this practice is to address nutritional deficiencies within populations, thereby promoting better health outcomes. For instance, common examples include adding iodine to salt to prevent goiter or fortifying milk with vitamin D to improve bone health. This is crucial in combating widespread deficiencies that can lead to health issues, particularly in vulnerable groups such as women, children, and the elderly.

In contrast, while enhancing budget efficiency, improving taste, and extending shelf-life can be beneficial side effects of food processing and marketing, they do not represent the main goal of food fortification. The focus is squarely on improving the dietary intake of essential nutrients, making it a key strategy in public health nutrition.