Designing of Ready to Eat Convenient Mid - Day Meal for Children (5-10 yrs) and Adolescents (11-19 yrs) of Sri Lanka Based on Nutritional Perspective

The most prevalent malnutrition issues in Sri Lanka are the protein-energy malnutrition (PEM), vitamin A deficiency, and iron deficiency. Childhood and adolescence are the crucial stages of life which mostly susceptible to malnutrition since their major physiological and psychological changes take place. Although a balanced, nutritious diet is essential to them, present socio-economical and higher academic expectations have created a complex environment that often pushes them towards junk foods and unhealthy snacks. The objective of the present study was to develop ready-to-reconstitute convenient mid-day meals in three categories of chicken, fish, and soya, which match to the Sri Lankan local culinary style, with acceptable sensory properties to upgrade the nutritional status of school children (5-10 yrs) and adolescents (11-19 yrs). Those mid-day meals were designed according to the Food-Based Dietary Guidelines (FBDG) of Sri Lanka. The selected ingredients were processed; rice to instant rice, vegetables to dehydrated vegetables, and protein source of chicken, fish, and soya to pre-cooked sterilized curry pouches. The convenient mid-day meal packages were prepared using three portions of instant rice containing 10% of green gram flakes, dehydrated vegetables, and retorted curry mix respectively. Labeling was performed according to the type of curry mix inserted into the package as Chicken, Fish, or Soy mid-day meals. Physicochemical and sensorial properties of meals were evaluated. The caloric value of mid-day meals ranged 575 - 640.82 kcal. The protein content of meals ranged from 25.88 g to 32.68g and there was no significant difference (p<0.05) between protein contents in chicken and fish meals. The fat contents and dietary fiber contents significantly (p<0.05) differed and the highest contents of fat (3.15 g) and dietary fiber (4.40 g) were observed in chicken meal and soy meal respectively. The mineral contents of tested meals significantly differed (p<0.05) and the significant highest Ca, Fe, K, Fe, and P were observed in soya mid–day meals. The highest mean rank scores for all sensory attributes in terms of odor, appearance, texture, taste, and overall acceptability were observed in the chicken mid-day meal. Ready-to-reconstitute mid-day meals in three categories of chicken, fish, and soya, which could match to the Sri Lankan local culinary style, were developed with acceptable sensory properties.