Changing Perception through a Participatory Approach by Involving Adolescent School Children in Evaluating Smart Food Dishes in School Feeding Programs – Real-Time Experience from Central and Northern Tanzania

Figures & data

Figure 1. Flow diagram for the study design.

Table 1. Previous regular seven-day cyclic school menu served at school.

Day	Breakfast (Average serving size in g/student/meal ±SD)	Lunch, Average serving size in g/student/meal ±SD	Dinner, Average serving size in g/student/meal ±SD
1	Maize porridge (400 ± 100)	Maize meal (Ugali), 350 ± 100, Bean as side dish, 200 ± 50	Maize meal (Ugali), 350 ± 100, Bean as side dish, 200 ± 50
2	Maize porridge (400 ± 100)	Maize meal (Ugali), 350 ± 100, Bean as side dish, 200 ± 50	Rice 350 ± 100, Bean as side dish 200 ± 50
3	Maize porridge (400 ± 100)	Maize cooked together with bean (Makande), 400 ± 100	Maize meal (Ugali), 350 ± 100, Bean as side dish, 200 ± 50
4	Maize porridge (400 ± 100)	Maize meal (Ugali), 350 ± 100, Bean as side dish, 200 ± 50	Rice 350 ± 100, Bean as side dish 200 ± 50
5	Maize porridge (400 ± 100)	Maize cooked together with bean (Makande), 400 ± 100	Maize meal (Ugali) 350 ± 100, Bean as side dish 200 ± 50
6	Maize porridge (400 ± 100)	Maize meal (Ugali), 350 ± 100, Bean as side dish, 200 ± 50	Maize meal (Ugali) 350 ± 100, Bean as side dish 200 ± 50
7	Maize porridge (400 ± 100)	Maize meal (Ugali) 350 ± 100, Bean as side dish, 200 ± 50	Rice 350 ± 100, Bean as side dish 200 ± 50

Table 2. Improved school menu with higher diversity and nutrition.

Day	Breakfast (Average serving size in g/student/meal ±SD)	Lunch, Average serving size in g/student/meal ±SD	Dinner, Average serving size in g/student/meal ±SD
1	Finger millet porridge (400 ± 100)	Maize meal (Ugali), 350 ± 100, pigeonpea as side dish, 200 ± 50	Maize cooked together with pigeonpea (Makande), 400 ± 100
2	Finger millet porridge (400 ± 100)	Maize meal (Ugali), 350 ± 100, pigeonpea as side dish, 200 ± 50	Rice 350 ± 100, bean as side dish 200 ± 50
3	Finger millet porridge (400 ± 100)	Maize cooked together with pigeonpea (Makande), 400 ± 100	Maize meal (Ugali), 350 ± 100, Bean as side dish, 200 ± 50
4	Finger millet porridge (400 ± 100)	Maize meal (Ugali), 350 ± 100, bean as side dish, 200 ± 50	Rice 350 ± 100, pigeonpea as side dish 200 ± 50
5	Finger millet porridge (400 ± 100)	Maize cooked together with pigeonpea (Makande), 400 ± 100	Maize meal (Ugali) 350 ± 100, Bean as side dish 200 ± 50
6	Finger millet porridge (400 ± 100)	Maize meal (Ugali), 350 ± 100, pigeonpea as side dish, 200 ± 50	Maize cooked together with pigeonpea (Makande), 400 ± 100
7	Finger millet porridge (400 ± 100)	Maize meal (Ugali) 350 ± 100, pigeonpea as side dish, 200 ± 50	Rice 350 ± 100, Bean as side dish 200 ± 50

Table 3. Estimated average per capita intake of major nutrients in the regular menu compared to improved menu.

Nutrients	Amount of nutrient from previous menu, Average (SD)	Amount of nutrient from current menu, Average (SD)
Energy (Kcal)	899.0 (154.0)	1580.0 (134.0)
Protein (g)	28.9 (5.0)	48.6 (9.0)
Fat (g)	12.2 (3.0)	22.2 (3.0)
Iron (mg)	9.1 (1.7)	18.9 (2.3)
Calcium (mg)	101.7 (30)	572.7 (140.0)
Zinc (mg)	5.4 (1.3)	12.1 (3.7)

Table 4. Students and other stakeholders’ knowledge and attitude toward pigeonpea and finger millet-based meals.

Statements/questions asked	Example students’ answers	Example teachers’ and chefs’ answers
What do you know about pigeonpea and finger millet?	“My mother told finger millet doesn’t taste good”
	“I heard people saying finger millet is only for poor”
	“We never cooked finger millet at our home”
	“I know finger millet is for weaning children but mothers don’t buy it in our village due to high price”
	“At my home finger millet is cooked with milk”
	“We never cooked finger millet at our home”
	“At our home pigeonpea is cooked when it is green together with pounded cassava leaves”
	“At our home, we prefer to eat green pigeonpea”
What are the constraints in consumption of pigeonpea and/finger millet?	“If it is prepared with good taste we are ready to eat”	“School feeding committee don’t have policy to feed pigeonpea”
	“It is not provided for us regularly at school”	“Cost of the finger millet is high and is not affordable”
	“It causes flatulence problem”	“Know only few recipes which makes the meal boring”
	“At home none of the family member know to cook it tasty”
What did you learn about pigeonpea and finger millet based meals?	“If is cooked properly with onion and spices it is tasty”	“Pigeonpea takes less time to cook and it becomes soft and palatable”
	“These are highly nutritious foods which help in growth”
	“Finger millet is high in calcium which is good for bone health”
	“We need to eat a variety of foods so that we get more nutrients”
How much do you like pigeonpea and finger millet?	“If I don’t see pigeonpea in makande, I am upset”	“Pigeonpea is simple to cook and tastier especially in makande”
	“Finger millet porridge is tastier that maize porridge”	“When I didn’t add pigeonpea in makande children were asking me why”
	“I like to eat them everyday”

Table 5. The baseline and post-intervention end-line responses of the students and stakeholders (teachers, parents, and chefs) on their perception and acceptance of finger millet porridge.

	Student Responses N = 681		Stakeholder Responses N = 18
Questions asked	Yes	No	Yes	No
Baseline
Had you ever tasted pigeonpea?	651 (95.5)	30 (4.4)	18 (100)	-
Had you eaten pigeonpea frequently? (more than 3 times a week)	-	651 (95.5)	-	18 (100)
Had you ever tasted finger millet?	659 (96.7)	22 (3.2)	18 (100)
Had you eaten finger millet frequently? (more than 3 times a week)	-	659 (96.7)	-	18 (100)
Did you have negative perceptions on pigeonpea?	310 (45.5)	371 (54.5)	18 (100)	-
Did you have negative perceptions on finger millet before training	254 (37.3)	427 (62.7)	18 (100)	-
Post intervention End-line
Have you changed negative perceptions on pigeonpea after training?	218 (70.3)	92 (29.7)	18 (100)	-
Have you changed negative perceptions on finger millet after training?	202 (79.5)	52 (20.5)	18 (100)	-

Numbers in parentheses are percentage.

Table 6. Students’ preference on the number of days they wanted to have pigeonpea and finger millet-based food as part of the school meal (Surveyed about 15 months after the intervention stopped).

	Children responded (N = 681)
Preference	Once a week	Twice a week	3 to 6 times a week	Everyday	Don’t like to eat
Pigeonpea meal	77 (11.3)	334 (49.0)	118 (17.3)	122 (17.9)	30 (4.4)
Finger millet meal	18 (2.6)	53 (7.8)	59 (8.7)	542 (79.6)	9 (1.3)

Numbers in parentheses are percentage.

Table 7. Cost reduction (in Tanzanian Shillings) by substituting one meal of beans with pigeonpea.

School Name	Number of students	Cost of maize with bean food/student/meal	Cost of maize with pigeonpea food/student/meal	Percentage cost reduction
Dareda	882	537.5	425.0	21
Babati day	839	247.0	196.7	20
Amani Abeid	705	597.0	459.5	23
Bukulu	396	200.0	150.0	25