Stability of retinyl palmitate during cooking and storage in rice fortified with Ultra Rice (TM) fortification technology

Rice fortified with Ultra Rice(TM) (UR) containing retinyl palmitate (RP) w as tested as a potential vehicle for vitamin A delivery. After UR was mixed with a long grain rice at the ratio of 1 to 99 (w/w), the stability of RP in the rice mixture was studied during cooking and storage for 6 mo. After cooking, the percent retention range of RP was 75 to 87, depending upon the cooking methods. The stability of RP in the rice stored at 2 different tem peratures and relative humidities (RH) appeared to be more affected by temp erature than RH. Therefore, under tropical conditions, rice fortified with RP might require special handling to avoid significant RP losses.