29 primary boarding schools in Ninh Binh province will apply e-menu in the preparation of boarding lunch for pupils. This information has recently been presented at the Conference on deploying the "Nutrition-balanced Menu Development Software" organized by Ninh Binh Department of Education and Training in cooperation with Ajinomoto Vietnam last August 29th, 2018.

Dr. Ngu Duy Anh, Head of Physical Education Department, Ministry of Education & Training was giving directions in using the software

Attending the conference were Dr. Ngu Duy Anh, Head of Physical Education Department, Ministry of Education & Training, Ajinomoto Vietnam's leaders, leaders of Ninh Binh Department of Education & Training, leaders and executives of District Departments of Education & Training, School Management Board and the staff in charge of the boarding work along with representatives of Parents' Associations of primary boarding schools in the whole province.

At present, child nutrition at school age is a concern for parents as well as the education sector as malnutrition rate in rural areas is still prevalent while overweight, obesity accelerates at an alarming rate in both children and adults in urban areas. The rate of children lacking necessary micronutrients for optimal development in physical and mental health is still high.

One of the causes of this "double burden" in nutrition is that current primary boarding schools have not professionalized the preparation of boarding meals. The current menus used at schools are mainly based on experience, no basis to meet the demand for energy and nutrients. In addition, improving children’s nutritional state through rational school meals is one of the key contents of the National Strategy in Nutrition and the General Plan in Developing Stature, Physical Strength for Vietnamese in the period of 2011-2030.

Responding to this situation, Ajinomoto Vietnam has initiated and developed the School Meal Project with the goal of “Carrying out the responsibilities of contributing to education, nurturing and training the country’s future generations through nutrition and health improving activities, helping to enhance the stature and intellect for primary pupils”. The Project has received close collaborations from leading nutritional organizations in Vietnam, especially the National Institute of Nutrition - Ministry of Health.

The "Nutrition-balanced Menu Development Software" is one of the key contents of the Project. The software offers 120 diverse menus with 360 non-repeatable lunch dishes that are nutrition-balanced and divided into three regions: the North, the Central and the South.
The software also helps schools diversify menus by combining dishes available in the software or by using local materials in each place; check the nutrition of menus currently used. Through the software, schools can easily calculate and manage pupils’ meal expense.
The software is provided totally free on the Project’s website: www.buaanhocduong.com.vn. Each primary boarding school registers for an account to have full access to the software’s functions.

Also in the conference, the illustration poster of "3 minutes to change awareness" was introduced and guided to deploy to schools in parallel with the software. This is a visual tool that assists schools to educate nutritional knowledge for pupils, helping them understand the value of foods for health, thereby forming the habit of eating a variety of foods.

Till June 2018, there have been 36 provinces and cities with 2,910 primary boarding schools across the country implementing the “School Meal Project” through the "Nutrition-balanced Menu Development Software" and the poster of "3 minutes to change awareness".

After the conference, the Project’s executives will directly visit and instruct schools and boarding staff to use the software and the poster efficiently in order to optimize the boarding work, hence improving pupils’ health and intellect.