Anemia affects one third of the world's population, most of which is iron deficiency related (Gupta et al. 2015). Anemia and similar mineral deficiency diseases are primarily widespread in developing countries like India, due to their diet mainly made up of cereal grains and seeds such as rice (O'Dell et al.1972). In these types of food, the iron bioavailability is substantially reduced by the presence of phytic acid (C₆H₁₈O₂₄P₆) that inhibits the absorption of various minerals in the intestine by forming insoluble salts. Current research to increase the bioavailability of iron or zinc involves the bioengineering of crop plants which not only poses challenges in terms of the production of efficient genetically modified crops but also requires extensive research for drawing any conclusion on the strain sustainability (Gupta et al. 2015). We propose an alternative strategy that focuses on the bioengineering of microorganisms involved in the fermentation of Idli, a dish widely used as primary food source in a large part of India. Indeed,

Cereals, which are highly consumed in India, contain the highest levels of phytic acid.

Idli is mainly made of cereals. The majority of minerals present are not absorbed. We are looking for a solution to this bioavailability problem.

Figure 2:Phytase hydrolyzes phytic acid.