DETERMINANTS OF ACCESSIBILITY OF FARM HOUSEHOLDS’CHILDREN TO PROTEIN AND VITAMIN FORTIFIED FOODS IN EKITI STATE, NIGERIA

Abstract

Important progress has been made in micronutrient deficiency control over years. Today Nigeria is justifiably considered Africa’s success story on fortification of foods and iodization of edible salts. In order to find ways to bridge the existing gap in information and consumption of protein and vitamin fortified foods, this study sought to investigate the information source of respondents on protein and vitamin fortified foods, identify the social-economic characteristics, examine their frequency of consumption of these foods, determine the household’s perception of these foods and examine the factors affecting the accessibility to vitamin fortified foods amongst households in Ekiti state. The study was carried out to determine accessibility of farm household’s children to protein and vitamin. Fortified foods crops like as cassava, yam, maize, cocoyam just to mention a few that are grown. The population for the study is one hundred and twenty (120) respondents. Primary data were collected from the field through the use of validated questionnaire, which were administered on respondents. The data obtained were analysed using descriptive statistics, such as frequency distribution, means, and percentages. Inferential statistics such as Chi-square test was used to test for null hypothesis. Summary of the findings on socio-economic characteristics of the respondents revealed that about 45.8% were within the age range of 36-45 years and 55% were male. Also majorities were married (79.2%) and household size of 6-10 members were 69.2%. The largest percentage of respondents’ number of children in school was 62.5, 45% of the respondents were farmers and cultivated vegetables and fruits. Their major source of income was earning as laborers with 42.5 % and 74.2% respondents had farming as their major occupation. The study also revealed that about 39% had farm sizes less than six hectares, 52.5% of the respondents were aware of vitamin fortified foods about 64.2% of the respondents heard about the information on vitamin fortified foods from friends and relatives. About 31.7% of the respondent agreed that the information sources were effective, 37.5% saw the information as timely. Majority of the respondents fed their children with vitamin fortified foods daily. 59.2% of the respondents agreed that vitamin fortified foods were always available in the market. The study further revealed that 53.3% had the market far from their houses, 57.5% of the respondents children had adverse effect of vitamin fortified foods on them. 50.8% didn’t have idea of protein foods but 65.8% of them consumed these protein foods daily while 54.2% had different reasonsfor not consuming protein regularly. Majority of the respondent could not say if the time required to prepare vitamin fortified foods were more. About 55.8% couldn’t decide if they could recommend vitamin fortified foods to people, 49.2% did not notice any change in their children’s health and 63.3% of these children liked these foods. The result of the chi-square test revealed that there was significant relationship between sources of information and some vitamin and protein consumption by respondents, years of awareness of fortified foods, effectiveness of information source, timeliness of information, children in-take of vitamin fortified foods, frequency of feeding with vitamin fortified foods and having idea of protein foods. However, there was no significant relationship between source of information and the awarenessof fortified foods, no reason for non consumption, frequency of intake of protein foods and children likeness for the foods. There was no significant relationship between almost all the socio economic characteristics (age, sex, marital status, household size, educational level, religion, number of children in school, number of children and age range of children) of the respondents and children’s’ consumption of vitamin fortified foods. It was only marriage that was significant in relationship with children’s consumption of vitamin fortified foods It can be observed that the age of farmers, sex, marital status, household size, educational level do not have any significant relationship with children’s protein consumption. Marriage, number of children, number of children in school, as well as the age range of children all had significant relationship or association with the respondents’ protein consumption.