NUTRITIONAL-EVALUATION OF HOME-PROCESSED WEANING FOODS BASED ON LOW-COST LOCALLY AVAILABLE FOODS

Four supplements were developed from locally available least expensive food items, using home-processing methods of roasting and malting. Th e supplement mixtures developed were: (i) roasted wheat, malted bengal gram, roasted groundnuts, jaggery and dried amaranth leaves, (ii) roa sted wheat, malted green gram, roasted groundnuts, jaggery and dried a maranth leaves, (iii) roasted pearl millet, malted bengal gram, roaste d groundnuts, jaggery and dried amaranth leaves, and (iv) roasted pear l millet, malted green gram, roasted groundnuts, jaggery and dried ama ranth leaves. The ingredients were mixed in the ratio of 4:1:1:4:1 in all the four formulae. Nutritional evaluation of the developed supplem ents indicated that moisture, protein, energy, ash, fibre, iron and ca lcium contents of all the developed supplements were within the ranges prescribed by the Indian Standard Institute for processed weaning foo ds and could meet, satisfactorily, one third of the RDA (Recommended D ietary Allowances) of these nutrients per day for children of 1 to 3 y ears of age.