An LNS containing FO with improved omega-6/omega-3 PUFA ratio was successfully formulated with staple Indian ingredients and optimized for storage stability using RSM.

Lipid-based nutrient supplements (LNS) are used to prevent and treat moderate and severe acute malnutrition, a leading cause of mortality in children-under-five. The physical and chemical changes of two new LNS products were evaluated before and after accelerated shelf life testing (ASLT) according to protocols suggested by the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) and Doctors without Borders and compared against USAID’s A-20 paste as a control. LNS formulas containing Shea butter from the Shea nut tree (Vitellaria paradoxa), a common fat source in parts of Sub-Saharan Africa, with and without flax-seed oil, as a source of omega-3 fatty acids, were developed. LNS formulas were batched (0.8 kg) in a wet grinder, sealed under nitrogen in three-layer mini-pouches (20 g), and underwent ASLT at 40 ± 2 °C for six months with sampling every eight weeks. At each time point, water activity, moisture, peroxide value, oil separation, vitamin C content, and hardness were evaluated. Results showed comparable stability among all formulas with an increase in Aw (p < 0.05) but no change in vitamin C, oil separation, or peroxide value. Addition of Shea butter improved the LNS’s hardness, which remained stable over time. Modifying fat profile in LNS can improve its texture and essential fatty acid content without affecting its storage stability.

BackgroundIn Honduras, undernutrition disproportionately affects women, children and rural inhabitants living from subsistence agriculture. Organizations that provide agriculture extension services (AES) are often well positioned to bring the most up to date information to farming communities at the different information transfer points associated with the agricultural food supply chain (e.g., production, marketing, processing, and finance). Nonetheless, AES has traditionally focused on productivity aspects for basic staples (e.g., corn and beans), rather than the well‐being of farmers beyond improved incomes. Therefore, there is strong interest in developing or strengthening the capacity of AES organizations to improve nutrition. The purpose of this study was to characterize the nutrition‐related knowledge, attitudes, and practices (KAP) and household dietary diversity (HDD) amongst employees of AES organizations (EAES) and their beneficiaries (BAES) in the Dry Corridor of Honduras.MethodsA convenience sample of BAES households (n=51) located in Copan and Ocotepeque was interviewed. Male and female heads of household were interviewed whenever possible (n=86 total; 56% female). In‐home, in‐person interviews were conducted to complete surveys: nutrition KAP (constructs include: dietary guidelines, iron deficiency anemia, vitamin A, overweight/obesity, water safety/sanitation), HDD, coping strategies index (CSI), and demographics. Housing quality (HQ) was evaluated by informal interviewer observation. A convenience sample of EAES (n=52 total; 75% male) self‐selected to complete KAP, HDD, and demographic questionnaires via online Qualtrics platform.ResultsA large proportion of BAES (71%) reported primary school as their highest level of education. More than 90% of EAES earned at least a high school diploma. Average composite nutrition knowledge scores between BAES and EAES differed (46.3% vs. 59.6%; P<0.01). Average composite healthy nutrition attitudes scores were similar between BAES and EAES (70% and 75%; P>0.05). Overall, knowledge and healthy attitudes toward nutrition were associated across groups (r=0.62; P<0.01). Knowledge scores varied by construct and differed between groups. On average, BAES and EAES knowledge scores were 22% vs. 74% in dietary guidelines (P<0.01), 51% vs. 41% in anemia (P<0.01), 29% vs. 31% in vitamin A (P>0.05), 68% vs. 68% in overweight/obesity (P>0.05), and 76% vs. 83% in water safety/sanitation (P<0.05). BAES total nutrition knowledge scores were correlated to HDD scores (r=0.288; P<0.01); EAES (P>0.05). BAES education level, but not that of EAES, correlated with HDD scores (r=0.305; P<0.01). Dietary diversity scores were higher in EAES than in BAES (10.5 ± 0.9 vs. 8.7± 1.8; P<0.01). On average, foods from animal sources contributed more to the dietary diversity of EAES than BAES (P<0.01). BAES CSI scores were indicative of food insecurity (45.6±36.0; range=0–154), however CSI was not associated with HHD (r=−0.2; P=0.07). Most BAES coped with food insecurity by reducing portion sizes or buying food on credit.ConclusionConsidering BAES relationship to EAES and that increased knowledge results in healthy nutrition attitudes, there is an urgent need for nutrition education interventions sensitive to both BAES and EAES demands, particularly pertaining to dietary guidelines for Honduras, anemia, and vitamin A.Support or Funding InformationUSAID/Integrating Nutrition and Gender within Agricultural Extension Services (INGENAES)

BackgroundThe Regional Center for the Horticulture Innovation Lab at Zamorano University in Honduras provides extension services and training to many low‐income agricultural families in Honduras and Central America. In the Yeguare Valley, the Center works primarily through its MIC‐CC program in the department of Francisco Morazán or collaborates with NGOs like Obra Kolping in the department of El Paraíso. Families in these areas face environmental challenges and are frequently food insecure. Most technical assistance from USAID's mission in Honduras focuses on the Dry Corridor (northwest region). The primary intervention used by the Center is the Huerto Familiar con Enfoque Biointensivo. This is an organic farming system designed to provide a family's caloric and some, but not all nutrient needs in a small plot (100 m2). The objective of this work was to evaluate the impact of the Center's extension training with a focus on the experience of women and their ability to promote nutrition in the household.MethodsForty families who received training from the Center during the last three years were selected to complete surveys and nutrition measurements. A subset of women from those families completed semi‐structured interviews about their experience in the program. Roughly half of the participants came from the Obra Kolping group in El Paraiso, and the rest came from the MIC‐CC group in Fransisco Morazan. The surveys included the Women's Empowerment in Agricultural Index (WEAI), the Coping Strategies Index (CSI), and Household Dietary Diversity (HDD), as well as social network, demographic and socio‐economic surveys.ResultsThe WEAI score for this sample was 0.76. Lack of women's achievement in the empowerment domains of resource control, income, and time contributed the most to women's disempowerment in the sample. Men were more empowered (5DE mean= 0.84±0.12; P<0.05) and more food secure (CSI; P<0.05) than women. Coping strategies against food insecurity varied on severity but were similar between sexes. CSI and WEAI score did not correlate. Men's CSI scores were strongly associated (r=0.78; P<0.05) with the income decisions domain of empowerment. The Obra Kolping groups were both more empowered (P<0.05) and less food secure (P<0.05) than those under MIC‐CC. For all respondents, CSI was negatively associated with HDD scores (r= −0.42; P<0.05). Basic grains and beans were the bulk of their diets (>90% respondents). A lesser proportion of respondents reported consuming fruit (37%) in the last 24 hours, vegetables (45%) or dairy products (54%). Mean HDD score was 7.5±2.1 of 12 food groups. Dietary diversity did not change based on sex or program. Interview and social network data showed participants do not readily identify authoritative sources of nutrition information. Often common sources were healthcare workers, agricultural extension agents, or family members, most of whom have no formal nutrition training. Nutrition knowledge is low in Honduras, and current agricultural extension services do not address nutrition.ConclusionIncorporating nutrition concepts, targeted to increase fruit and vegetable consumption, into the Center's training would be a simple program adaptation. However, as income, time and resource control are domains that constrain women's empowerment, training activities should be sensitive to their needs.Support or Funding InformationBorlaug Fellows in Global Food Security, College of ACES Office of International Programs Graduate Research Grant, USAID/INGENAES