Brief communication Computed and chemically determined nutrient content of foods in Greece

Abstract

Energy-generating nutrients and total energy were computed and analytically determined for four widely used foods in Greece (mousaka, bean soup, infant food, and feta cheese), as well as for the individual food items necessary for their preparation. Standard procedures were used for chemical analyses, whereas computed values were generated through the Unilever Dietary Analysis Program – UNIDAP (Barrow et al., 1988) on the basis of the British food composition tables. Pesticides and pesticide residues were also determined in the studied samples. A very good agreement was noted with respect to the nutrient composition of the four prepared foods, whereas the agreement was somewhat weaker for the individual food items used for the preparation of the composite foods. It is concluded that the UNIDAP program generates reliable nutrient composition data for composite foods and for time integrated dietary intakes in Greece. The concentrations of several of the determined pesticides were towards the higher end of the spectrum of levels reported in the literature. This project has demonstrated the value of collaboration between academic institutions, industry, and state laboratories towards the development and validation of food composition databases.