Nutritional Deficiencies During the Harvest Season According to Household Consumption and Level of Nutritional Knowledge: A Case Study of Northern Mozambique

Mozambique is classified as a low income country, the lowest development classification defined by the World Bank. It is underdeveloped in food security, agricultural production, and nutritional status, and research shows its residents are not foreign to poverty and malnutrition. Low protein, starchy foods (maize, rice, wheat, cassava) comprise the majority of the Mozambican diet; these starchy foods are the most available for consumption. Although availability impacts diet, educational barriers may also threaten the knowledge of nutrition and perceptions of healthy foods. Illiteracy and lack of education are extreme challenges to disseminating nutritional education efforts in the rural Nampula region. New Horizons, a forprofit poultry company located in the rural Nampula region, provides local villagers with employment opportunities that provide increased income and ultimately lead to increased quality of life (which may affect employees’ diet and food choices). This study assessed the nutritional status of New Horizons employees and nonemployees and their knowledge and perceptions of nutrition. When reporting daily food consumption, grains represented the highest percentage of caloric intake for both groups, followed by beans and tubers. Respondents could not consistently provide a definition of nutrition, but employees were able to provide a definition more often than nonemployees. When reporting healthy foods, leaves, maize flour, and bananas were chosen most often. When reporting preferred foods to consume, employees chose luxury goods and nonemployees chose starchy foods. Respondents could not provide a consistent answer of where they learned about healthy foods. Implications for practice include incorporating nutrition and healthy foods lessons with school lunch programs. Future research should assess respondents during the harvest, post-harvest, and hungry seasons to account for seasonality, and measure foods consumed by providing measuring utensils for respondents. ©2016 by Maggie Jo Hansen All Rights Reserved Acknowledgments Words cheapen the experience of graduate school, and I am thankful to be stretched, molded, refined, humbled, and matured through this process. I truly wish this fulfilling experience for every graduate student who wonders if it’s worth it. It’s more than worth it. There is no one person who has impacted my life like Dr. Leslie Edgar. Her hard work and intellect are beyond admirable. I am spurred on by the depth of her character, strength of her dedication, and hope for positive change. When I was down, she lifted me up; when I was off track, she yanked me back on track (even if it hurt a little); when I was selected as the Distinguished Scholar, she invited my nana as her guest so my whole family could be there. When I pitched this random thesis idea to her, she jumped on board. I am so lucky to work for someone who believes in me, challenges me, and is invested in my success – and all of this so early in my career! I could go on and on about how she has impacted me, but I’ll leave it at this: It has been an extreme honor to work for her, and I leave this institution knowing I will never have another boss and mentor like Dr. Edgar, which only fuels my desire to be as wonderful as her for someone else in the future. After four years of undergraduate courses, I walked into the most exciting and interesting class on my first day as a graduate student. Dr. Lanier Nalley’s Agricultural and Rural Development course finally answered all my questions, showing me that I can combine my passion to help others and analytical mindset to solve problems. Even further, Dr. Nalley didn’t brush me to the side when I said I wanted to do my research in development, and he introduced me to the most impactful and divine people I have ever met at New Horizons. There, I saw the Gospel lived out daily, where Andrew and his team love others, while providing a physical need and empowerment through sustainable business. It is impossible to walk away from New Horizons and not be deeply stirred. I am infinitely thankful to Dr. Nalley and Andrew for letting me play a small part in this large effort; it has deeply impacted me to my core. There is no way this thesis would be possible without Dr. Jill Rucker, Dr. Bruce Dixon, Diana Danforth, Paige Acklie, Jessica Garross, Craig Cobb, Katelyn Romero, and Emily English. Dr. Rucker’s constant encouragement and superior writing skills and Dr. Dixon’s renowned humor and unbelievable intellect have made this a success. I have been extremely lucky to have a committee of four excellent professionals who have shown me patience and interest; you are truly the dream team. Ms. Danforth’s patience with my helplessness and the countless models we ran in SAS and STATA were unmatchable. Her humor and company made our meetings enjoyable, even when I had no idea what was going on. Paige Acklie was my right-hand woman every day in Africa; data collection would have fallen apart without her. Paige is fiercely dedicated to her work and her friends, regardless of receiving any credit. She helped rewrite the survey, keep everyone on track, code data, and even recalculate and enter all of my data just two weeks ago when we realized it was all wrong. Jessica, Craig, Katelyn, and Emily kept our spirits light in Mozambique, and presented me with valuable opportunities to grow in character as a leader. I am eternally grateful for each of you. Finally, nothing in my graduate career, from my assistantship to this project, would be possible without the support of Dean Michael Vayda. Thank you for funding my job and my expenses in Mozambique. Thank you for believing in me. Thank you for ignoring negativity and focusing on moving forward. Thank you for answering me when I asked what you would do different if you could start your career over. I am wealthy in blessings, and leave the University of Arkansas a better person and professional because of this group of amazing, rare individuals.