What’s the difference between folate and folic acid?

Folic acid and folate describe one of the B vitamins that your body needs for good health.

Folate is what is naturally found in foods. Foods that naturally have folate in them include:

• whole grain breads
• dark green vegetables (e.g. peas, spinach, Brussels sprouts and broccoli)
• citrus fruits like oranges
• peas, beans and lentils

Folic acid is added to foods (called fortification). Foods that are fortified with folic acid include:

• enriched bread
• enriched pasta
• most breakfast cereals

Read food labels to find out if the food is fortified with folic acid.

Both ‘folic acid’ and ‘folate’ are the names that you will find on the label of a multivitamin that contains this B vitamin.