Feeding Practices, Food Variety, and Dietary Diversity – Indicators of Nutritional Status among Historically DisadvantagedAgri-business Families, South Africa

Background: In the South African context, little is known about thenutritional status of historically disadvantaged smallholder food producers andtheir family members. Food Variety Scores (FVS) and Dietary DiversityScores (DDS) are some of the indicators of nutritional status. This study soughtto evaluate the nutritional status of children of historically disadvantaged agri -business smallholders at Alfred Nzo District. Methods: This study‟spurposeful sample comprised of 263 agri-business households that generatedannual turnover of US $11 811 – $39 370, and 327 children aged 5-14 years. A3-day 24h dietary recall method was administered to collect information usingquestionnaires to assess the households‟ socio-economic status and thecaregivers‟ nutritional practices. Descriptive, correlational, and non-parametricstatistical analyses were performed. Results: The majority of caregivers‟households had a monthly non-farm income of US $78.82 - $118.11 (32.3%),and food expenditure of US $55.20 - $70.87 (23.2%). The households‟nutritional practices appeared weak. Half of the caregivers‟ households(50.2%) could not afford to provide breakfast for their children every daybefore they go to school or church. The mean FVS was low at 23.43 ± 7.89,while the mean DDS was debatably high at 7.82 ± 4.53. The households‟ nonfarmincome was positively and highly correlated (r = 0.55) to foodexpenditure (P < 0.01). In turn, food expenditure had a significant influence onFVS (P < 0.01) and DDS (P < 0.05). Conclusion: Households of historicallydisadvantaged agri-business smallholders had rather poor nutritional status.Staple food production-based security programs are required to improvenutrition.

کلیدواژه ها:

Feeding practice ، FVS ، DDS ، Nutritional status