This is due to a variety of causes including nonavailability of both raw and packaging materials as well as restrictions on the use of sugar in manu facturing. It has generally been more profitable to import products from the cheapest sources which are often past their expiration dates or declared unfit for human consumption. One of the few growth areas in production is date syrup which, because of the nonavailability of sugar for sweets, is sold widely as a substitute for jams and preserves. Additional problems for food production from small manufacturers in the private sector lie in poor quality control and the use of non-food grade materials for food use. The latter can include emulsifiers, thickeners, dyes, and other chemicals.
Regulations are unable to be enforced and very real food safety hazards exist.
Adequate mechanisms for food safety need to be reestablished although it is recognised that these will have low priority in relation to the paramount needs of supplying food energy to the population. Six hundred and ninety-three households were visited and 768 mothers were interviewed. Information was collected on 2,120 children under 10 years of age, and a total of 594 children under-five years of age were measured for anthropometry. Since 1991, shortly after the inception of the sanctions, the nutritional status of children in Baghdad has significantly deteriorated. Compared with 1991 estimates, the current survey demonstrates a 4-fold increase in wasting for the city of Baghdad.