Results of chemical analysis of meals and food products being given to pupils of general education schools in the frame of the “School Lunch” program / Эрүүл мэндийн лаборатори

ABSTRACT

Background@#The “School Lunch” program was initiated by the Government of Mongolia in 2006. The purpose of our study was to assess nutritious values of the meals and food products being given to pupils of general education schools in the frame of the program.@*Materials and methods@#Nutritious values of 32 samples of school canteen meals and food products of 5 general education schools were determined using chemical analysis methods. @*Results@#The average calorie content of the analyzed meals was 181.07-271.08 kcal, and the average content of vitamin C was 0.28-0.84 mg/g. The energy value of bakery products was high (110.97-436.23kcal) whereas their vitamin C content was low (0.34 mg/g). The calorie content in dairy products was reasonably high (46.17-52.85kcal), and the average level of calcium was 95.84-103.1mg/g, of iron was 0.7-1.7mg/g and of vitamin C was 0.28-0.84 mg/g.@*Conclusions@#</br>1.The study results highlight the necessity of broadening the variety of food products given to schoolchildren in the frame of the “Lunch” program. </br>2.Fruits and vegetables, the main source of minerals and vitamins, make a small percentage of the food products given to school children, and bakery products rich of calorie prevail in the menu.