CONTRIBUTION OF MID-DAY MEALS TO THE DAILY NUTRIENT REQUIREMENT OF SCHOOL-CHILDREN IN NIGERIA

Three hundred pupils in Ibadan were used for the study, 150 of them from Abadina Primary School located within the University of Ibadan, to represent urban areas and the other 150 pupils from Ebenezer Primary School, Akingbile, a village 10 km from Ibadan City, to represent the rural area. The school meals served in these areas were chemically analysed; the average total energy (of the school meal) contributions to the actual intakes for the rural and urban areas were about 16·3% and 15·2%, respectively, while protein contributions were about 18·0% and 24·1% in rural and urban schools, respectively. Analysis, of the 24h recall data obtained from the children randomly selected from each school, showed that there were no significant differences (P > 0·05) in the calorie and iron intakes of the two groups, while crude protein and calcium were significantly higher in the urban than in the rural school children. However, the introduction of the school meal positively reduces deficiencies and bridges the gap between Recommended Dietary Allowance and actual daily intake of nutrients. © 1990.