Consultation is open
Purpose
The Minister for Public Health, Wellbeing and the National Drugs Strategy, Jennifer Murnane O’Connor TD has launched an online public consultation seeking the views and opinions of the public and industry on the proposed mandatory fortification of non wholemeal flour with folic acid, to help reduce the incidence of neural tube defects ( e.g. spina bifida, anencephaly, encephalocele, iniencephaly) in Ireland.
Section A of the survey is directed to the general public and to business operators. In this section we are interested in your awareness of the role of folic acid to help reduce the incidence of neural tube defects, and your your views on potential measures which can be taken by the Government to help reduce the incidence of neural tube defects in Ireland.
Section B of the survey is directed to ‘food industry’ and related business operators. In this section we are interested in your views on how mandatory flour fortification with folic acid may affect your activities, as your input on these measures could help businesses adapt to new fortification requirements.
The views and opinions collected from this consultation will be considered and may be used to inform future policy and legislation regarding fortification of flour with folic acid.
How to Participate
Please click on the ‘Complete Survey’ link below to take the survey. You will be redirected to the EU survey site where you will be given further instructions on how to complete the survey.
The submissions for this online consultation will close at 5.00PM on 5 October 2026.
Please note:
- We are seeking views from residents of Ireland only.
- Internet Provider (IP) addresses will be retained for the sole purpose of identifying whether a response was generated in Ireland, and only one response will be accepted from each IP address.
- Do not include any personal identifying information in any of your responses.
The estimated time to complete the survey is: 5 minutes.
For further information about folic acid, neural tube defects, and spina bifida please refer to the following links:
