Citing a study appeared in the Medical Journal of Australia, Parliamentary Secretary for Health and Ageing Catherine King expressed contentment with the fact that keeping folic acid as one of the ingredients in bread flour helped improving folate levels in the Australian population.

In Australia, millers have been adding folic acid to wheat flour since 2009 that is used to make breads. The decision was followed by approval from Food Standards Australia New Zealand (FSANZ), which evaluated folic acid on safety grounds. FSANZ has kept a vigil eye on the use of folic acid so as to ensure its safety for the health of people and to serve this purpose; it is continuously assessing scientific researches on folic acid.

Such a measure has helped increasing folic acid levels in women that has resulted into decrease in the incidents of neural tube defects. The intake of folic acid is important for women who may get pregnant and it also helps in forming new healthy cells.

"I congratulate industry for the work they've done in implementing this important initiative which aimed to reduce the number of neural tube defects in the Australian population", Ms. King.