Assessment of dietary intake at home and outside the home in Bamako (Mali)

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Abstract
A food consumption survey undertaken in Mali, including 74 households and 367 inhabitants, showed that meals prepared at home secured the daily energy requirement in 79%, 66% and 54% of the families of fair, middle and low socio‐economic status, respectively. Likewise, the ratio of energy supplied as high quality protein and the intake of calcium and vitamin A diminished with decreasing incomes. These inadequacies were partly compensated for by street food. More than 91% of the children, regardless of social condition or gender, ate outdoor food, which provided 8–17% of their daily energy, 5–27% of their protein and up to 100% of their vitamin A needs. The dietary contribution of street food was most important for pre‐school children of poor families whose mothers were involved in trading food on the roadsides. Adults resorted less frequently to street food (57%, 75% and 90% for individuals with fair, middle and low incomes, respectively). Outdoor consumption has to be assessed in food consumption surveys and measures designed to improve nutrition must take account of the importance of street food. Furthermore, provided a few recommendations are made to its vendors, street food readily amenable to innovation and changes has the potential to offset in part the inadequacies of home food, especially for schoolchildren.