Pupils of Odhuro primary school in Bondo, a Junior Farmer Field and Life School, sharing a meal of cassava.

Buenos Aires - Kenya has scooped this year’s International Network of Food Data Systems (INFOODS) Success Story Award 2017, for the successful implementation of food composition activities in Kenya. With the great strides that the country has made towards the review of this national document that shows the nutrient values for the most commonly consumed foods in a given region, Kenya has been recognized as a good demonstration and one of the leaders in Africa on Food composition work.

The award was presented during the 12th International Food Data Conference (IFDC) held at the Cultural Center of Science of the Ministry of Science, Technology and Productive Innovation in Buenos Aires, Argentina, 11-13 October 2017. The theme of the conference was “From Food Composition to better Policies and Programmes in Nutrition and Agriculture”. The conference provided a platform for exchange of experiences among specialists around the activities of the generation and compilation of food composition data and their applications in the different areas.  

The aim of the overall conference was outlined as an "exchange of experiences among specialists from around the world around the activities of the generation and compilation of food composition data and their applications in the different areas such as nutrition, health, biodiversity, food technology, biotechnology, food policies, food nutrition education, and agriculture programmes and policies".

A food composition table is a publication that shows the nutrient values for the most commonly consumed foods in a given region. Food composition data are indispensable in the field of agriculture and nutrition. In nutrition, they form the basis for almost all aspects such as establishment of nutrient adequacy of populations, nutrient requirements, nutrition promotion, food fortification and food labelling. 

This forms the basis on which programmes and policies in nutrition and health are developed, implemented and monitored. In agriculture, they can be used to guide production of locally available nutrient dense foods, inform agricultural policies, research and programs. Food composition data represent the basic tools to improve agriculture, nutrition, health and food security in all populations.

During this conference, FAO-Kenya's Head of Nutrition Unit Angela Kimani made a presentation on behalf of all the national stakeholders, on the ‘Review and updates of the Kenya Food Composition Tables ’. The process in Kenya is led by the nutrition unit of the Health Ministry and the Kenya Agriculture and Livestock Research Organization, with the support of a formal multi-disciplinary and cross-sectoral team of experts drawn from government ministries, universities, research institutions, and non-governmental organizations who formed the steering committee and FAO’s technical team. Kenya’s new food composition table is anticipated to be completed and launched at the start of 2018.

Contacts

Ruth Lehmann | Communications Officer | Food and Agriculture Organization - Kenya Representation|[email protected]