Abstract
This study was conducted to evaluation the quality of meals served in elementary school based on nutrient contents and food diversity . A questionnaire was mailed to school foodservice dietitians requesting one week menus for April and October . Menus served in 388 schools from each province and from major cities in Korea were analyzed. Mean nutrient contents per meal of persons served, and food expenses per meal. Mean percentages of energy from fat was 20.2% , and was significantly l different by foodservice system. When nutrient contents were converted to amount per 1, 000kcal, all were higher than that calculated from RDA except calcium, iron, and Vitamin A. Most of these were not significantly different according to area, foodservice system, the number of persons served, and food expense per meal. Compared to 1/3 of RDA for children , many meals provided lower amounts of energy, Vit A, VitB2, and Ca. More than half of the meals provided less iron than 1/3 RDA for 10-12 years girls. Using the highest values of RDA for the elementary school age group as evaluation, criteria nutrient adequacy ratios(NAR) were lowest for Ca(0.61), Vit A(0.57), and iron(0.77). The mean adequacy ratio(MAR) was 0.86. Mean numbers of food items and dishes per meal were 15.3 and 5.1 , respectively. 66.3% of the meals provided three food groups of grain, meat, and vegetable. Except for the number of different food items served per meal, the aspect of food diversity was similar to that of nutrient contents. There was significant positive correlation between mean number of different food items served per meal and nutrient content . In summary , schools in small cities and rural areas than those in large cities, schools adapting commissary or joint management than those or density. Also the more food groups served per meal, the higher the nutrient content per meal . In summary , schools in small cities and rural areas than those in large cities, schools adapting commissary or joint management than those adapting conventional foodservice system, schools serving smaller number of persons, and schools with higher food expenses provided higher energy contents and food diversity.