Sensory acceptance of the lunch box of the school feeding program of the ministry of education in children from 4 to 6 years of age

Abstract

The research was conducted at the Dr. June Guzmán Serrano School, located in the city of Quevedo, whose study focused on the School Feeding Program implemented by the Ministry of Education of Ecuador. The objective was to determine the sensory acceptance of the lunch box provided by this program in children aged 4 to 5 years. This age group is very relevant because it is at a stage where adequate nutrition impacts growth and cognitive development. In the period 2023-2024 the population is 90 students, the research included everyone, without taking into account any type of exclusions, this ensured that the results are representative. The initiative behind this study was to determine the acceptability of the food components delivered to the students. For this purpose, sensory acceptance tests were conducted, as in several studies it has proven to be a very effective methodology in children. The results revealed that 85% of the children mentioned that they liked the presentation of the food received, which shows the importance of presentation in infants. However, the study also revealed that there are areas for improvement as 45% of the children indicated that they did not like the taste of the products. This finding highlights the need to improve the palatability of the program's foods.