Appréciation de la qualité des aliments en milieu scolaire dans la ville de N'Djamena au Tchad

The availability of food in schools is extremely important, especially in developing countries, such as Chad. This activity allows schoolchildren to eat in order to remain focused during classes and have better results, to raise the level of education in Chad, and to consequently develop the economy of the country. The quality of foods sold in schools has been little researched so far in Chad. The objective of the study conducted in N'Djamena, Chad, was to assess the level of food safety and hygiene on the one hand, and to identify the diversity and quality of the foods that are provided by vendors in private primary schools on the other, in order to reveal gaps and guide recommendations. The study conducted from May to June 2018 included 45 vendors located within 10 schools and 10 administrators of private primary schools located in N'Djamena. The level of hygiene, the diversity and the quality of foods was evaluated using observations and a questionnaire administered to vendors based on an instrument and framework previously used to evaluate street foods vendors in Chad. An interview was conducted with school administrators to evaluate their knowledge and perceptions about the hygiene, diversity and quality of foods sold at their school. Our study found that 86.7% of vendors were women, 81.9% were aged between 18 to 40, 64.4% were married, and 35.6% had no formal education. In terms of sanitation and hygiene, 77.8% of sales took place on an unsanitary table, 6.7% near garbage cans, 2.2% near latrines and 4.4% near gutters. Furthermore, 64.4% of food sales took place under sun exposure, 77.8% in the open air with the presence of flies (55.6%), stray animals (20%) and pests (26.7%). As for the dress code and hygiene of the salesmen, most wore their own city outfit (95.6%), practices for hand hygiene were not followed by 62.2%, 73.3% did not have their nails well-kept and 97.8% did not practice any medical follow-up on a regular basis. With regard to utensils and hand washing, only 53.3% reported washing utensils after each use and most did not offer any individual or collective device for hand washing. For diversity, the following food groups were found in all the schools studied: cereals, pulses, dairy products, fruits and vegetables, tubers, meat, fish, pastries and beverages, and sweet drinks. Observations indicates that the sale of cereals took place in eight schools out of ten, legumes were sold in nine schools, dairy products in six, fruits and vegetables in nine, tubers, seafood and meat products in seven, beverages in eight, candy and sweets in six schools, and baked goods in all of schools. Regarding food preparation, the majority of food sold is prepared in a traditional way. However, for salty foods, sellers tended to add powdered flavors (Maggi cube) in their preparations, and use sweet powders to make juices. These additions are all considered ultra-processed products and are associated to poor diet quality and adverse effects on health.   The results of this school-based study showed that, overall, the safety and hygiene of the foods offered are not adequate, whereas there is a relatively good diversity in the food supply, despite the use of various ultra-processed products in culinary preparations. Measures should be taken to address health and hygiene issues, but also to maintain diversity and to educate sellers about methods of preparation and the use of healthy ingredients to avoid ultra-processed products. It would be important to conduct a comprehensive and systemic assessment of the safety and quality of food and cooking offered by school vendors, both to ensure the health of schoolchildren and to ensure its importance in the local economy

Keyphrases: Food, Safety, Hygiene, Diversity, Quality, Schools