California Mandates Folic Acid in Corn Masa Flour

California has become the first state to mandate the addition of folic acid to corn masa flour, a staple in Latino diets used to make tortillas and other traditional foods, in an effort to reduce high rates of neural tube defects among Hispanic infants. The law took effect in January, following its passage in 2024, and targets a disparity that has persisted despite national fortification efforts for other grains.

Andrea Lopez, a 44-year-old lawyer from Bakersfield, lost her firstborn son, Gabriel Cude, to anencephaly, a fatal neural tube defect, 15 years ago when he was just 10 days old. Unaware of folic acid's importance during her pregnancy at age 28, Lopez carried the baby to term after an ultrasound revealed the condition. "It's such a small effort for such a tremendous impact," she said. "There is very little that I wouldn't do to spare anybody this heartache."

The measure addresses a gap in public health protections. Since 1998, federal regulations have required folic acid, a B vitamin, in enriched wheat products like bread, cereals and pasta. Studies show this policy reduced neural tube defects, including spina bifida and anencephaly, by about 30 percent nationwide,...