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Food sources of Vitamin A

Foods Available

Through interviews and observations all foods available during the year were listed for each of the study populations. Thus a total of 103 foods were listed for Chamis and 169 for San Vicente, the latter having access to a wider variety of foods through the city market and greater economic resources. This list included thirty-seven vitamin A-containing foods for Chamis and forty-six for San Vicente.

Key foods were selected for further exploration on the basis of frequency, use, and potential as sources of vitamin A. Thirty-one foods were selected for Chamis and twenty-nine for San Vicente as listed in Table 7.2. In each case, nineteen potential vitamin A-containing foods were selected, both animal and vegetable sources: those currently in the diet as well as those less frequently used. Local staple foods were included in the list of key foods as were the more common protein and fat sources. Thus the list of key foods represented around 90% of the usual diet for each of the populations.

The principal difference in the key foods between these two populations is that Chamis depends primarily on home-produced and inexpensive foods, such as locally grown and processed grains, compared with the greater use of more refined products, such as rice, sugar, and pasta in San Vicente, where there is also a wider variety of animal products available. In Chamis cheaper, alternative sources of fat are used. Imported vegetables, such as Swiss chard or squash are used in San Vicente, whereas more wild-growing green leaves and herbs are used in Chamis. The flavoring agents and herbal infusions are similar for both communities.

Chamis

Locally produced food

More than 75% of the foods consumed in Chamis are grown locally and most are used for the family's own consumption (Rebaza Campos, 1993). The thirty-one key foods were referred to as locally produced 59% of the times they were mentioned. The study was conducted at a time of low availability; food stores were depleted and there would be no harvest for a number of weeks. The population was therefore more dependent on purchased food than at other times of the year.

TABLE 7.2
Selected Key Foods for Chamis and San Vicente

Cultivated fields

Most of the staple foods are grown by the families in fields near their homes or on land higher up in the Jalca. These include limited vitamin A sources, such as peas, broad beans, and yellow maize.

Animal products

Locally produced animal sources of vitamin A are primarily hen's eggs and to a lesser extent, chicken. Seventy-eight percent of the mothers own hens that are used principally for egg production. They are consumed almost entirely by the family, although they are occasionally sold to purchase other foods. One egg is added regularly to the soup when the hens are laying. Eggs are never purchased from the market. Meat is usually consumed only on special occasions.

Breastmilk, consumed by all children, was described as being "from ourselves." Cow's milk is consumed by a minority of the families (30%), half of whom obtain it from their own cows. However, for economic reasons, most of the milk is sold to the large companies in Cajamarca or to neighbors. Sometimes curds are made from the milk or obtained from the Jalca. Those families who consume milk usually distribute it among the children, but it is consumed irregularly.

Some families raise pigs, guinea pigs, rabbits, turkeys, and ducks. However, the meat from these animals is consumed infrequently and the animals are usually sold.

Home gardens

In Chamis 52% reported that they have home gardens adjacent to their houses. These were promoted by agricultural institutions in recent years. However, 40% of the mothers do not have them and some gardens were extremely small and unproductive, due both to a lack of water and seeds. The time of the study was poor for the home gardens, and production that year was poor in general.

Spring onions are grown by all of the respondents, and oregano by most. Mint, cilantro, and carrots were grown in 40% of the gardens, as well as a variety of other herbs and vegetables, including some plants used for medicinal purposes. Some other vegetables grown occasionally include cabbage, beetroot, cauliflower, yacon, lettuce, and radish. Most of these were introduced to the community in recent years and their use is limited. An example of this is the dark green, leafy vegetable, Swiss chard, that the women did not know how to use and gave to their animals. Only four of the key foods were mentioned as grown in the gardens by more than one respondent.

Most families use the plants they grow for their own consumption (82%), the rest are sold. Families grow different varieties of herbs so there is frequent interchange among neighbors.

Leafy green vegetables among the staple crops

The leafy green vegetables grown among the staple crops are mainly quinoa and amaranth leaves. Ulluco leaves are picked and eaten by the children, usually raw, however, this is an infrequent practice. The orange turnip dower is occasionally cooked with potato, as are amaranth leaves. Sometimes the stalks of oca are picked and sucked by the children. The leaves of the garlic plant are used for seasoning, particularly for soup.

Foods gathered from the wild

Among the plants gathered from the wild, chamcua (Minthostachis mollis Griseb.) was mentioned most often; 50% of the respondents reported collecting it. This is used principally in green soup, consumed universally when in season. Other potential vitamin A sources are the leaves and yellow flower of ñapush (Brassica rapa L.) mentioned by 15% of the mothers, and amaranth leaves (11%). However, these are eaten infrequently and are considered poor man's food. A number of other herbs mentioned by a few people are used in infusions for medicinal purposes. Certain fruits are picked from the wild when in season, including mulberry and cape gooseberry.

Foods from the market

The nearest market is in the city of Cajamarca. It has a wide variety of foods and is open every day. Food, brought twice a week from the coast and jungle, as well as from the Jalca and the environs of Cajamarca, is sold in the market. Most people in Chamis go to the market on Mondays, for the animal market. Thirty-two percent of the respondents reported going to the market once or twice a week, 56% once a fortnight, and 12% once a month.

The market is the major source of purchased food; 32% mentioned purchasing thirty-one key foods that include vegetable oil and fat, garlic, salt, tomato, and sugar. Most carrots and condiments, including hot peppers, are also purchased at the market. Other vitamin A-rich foods such as herbs used in soups, are usually homegrown-but are bought when out of season.

Certain vitamin A-rich foods are only acquired from the market. These include yellow sweet potato, mango, oranges, fish, algae, and occasionally papaya, none of which are produced in Cajamarca. Fish, usually dried and salted, is consumed more often than other animal products, except eggs. Sweet potato, although one of the cheapest foods in the market, is considered expensive by the population of Chamis.

A number of foods are bought depending on the amount of money available (cuanto hay). This can influence the quantity and frequency of certain foods, such as carrot or hot pepper, the type of food selected, such as cooking oil or the cheaper mutton fat, or whether certain foods considered as extras are bought at all, such as pasta, rice, sweet potato, fruit, or fish.

Food distribution programs

Food donated through food programs represents 3% of the sources of the key foods. Most of the foods donated can also be obtained from other sources. Of the twenty-six respondents, 80% participated in one or more food programs. This is fairly typical of the population in different parts of Peru at the present time.

In Chamis 25% of the respondents participated in a breakfast program that has been operating for more than ten years and receives food through the Catholic Church. The donated foods are principally staples and vegetable oil and do not include vitamin A-rich foods. They are prepared in soup, complemented with foods brought by the mothers. There is a lunch program that receives food from the government and that prepares the main meal twice a week. Food is also distributed through the literacy program. Similarly, the donated foods are not sources of vitamin A.

The program in which most mothers (32%) participated is the municipal milk distribution program for children, six months to thirteen years, and pregnant and lactating women. Mothers were given oats and sugar monthly for each child; at the time of the study no milk was distributed, although this was given periodically. Seven percent of mothers reported that their children participated in a recently implemented school breakfast program: a nutritious, fortified drink (with vitamins and minerals) and biscuits were given daily to the pupils of the primary school of Chamis. Maize flour soup was also given at midday.

Other sources

The acquisition of food through interchange of produce was mentioned as a relatively insignificant practice. Perhaps this was due to the time of year, or because it is done informally, as neighbors share herbs or other produce spontaneously when available or necessary.

The exchange of food for work among neighbors is important at certain times of the year, although this also does not amount to much in terms of total food, nor does it involve vitamin A sources, except for algae that is customary to include in the meals cooked for the workers. This is most common at harvest time when the peasants help each other and payment is in produce.

Seasonality

A number of vitamin A sources are available all year. These include carrot, squash, animal products, green peas, spring onions, and hot peppers. Similarly most of the more commonly used herbs are available year round; when they are not grown in home gardens they can be obtained from neighbors or inexpensively from the market.

Nevertheless a major group of vitamin A-rich foods are seasonal for this community. Of the fruits, mango is available only during February and March. Although sweet potato is available in the market all year, it is cheaper, and therefore consumed only during the summer months, January through March. The leaves of the ulluco, quinoa, and amaranth, and the wild ñapush flower are available in February and March. When they are harvested these leaves are consumed several times a week, but only young leaves are eaten and the season is short, two to four weeks for quinoa leaves.

A local delicacy is green soup (caldo verde), prepared with a mixture of green herbs, potato, and sometimes egg. In this form, larger quantities of these herbs are consumed than are normally added to soups, including the wild herb chamcua. This is a popular dish and is prepared early in the morning. Half of the mothers reported consuming green soup two or three times a week during the rainy season, when the ingredients are available. Even when the ingredients need to be bought, 44% prepare it once or twice a month, as the herbs are not expensive and the combination used is flexible according to availability.

San Vicente

Food purchased

Most foods consumed by the population of San Vicente are bought from local sources: the thirty-one key foods were referred to as purchased 75% of the times they were mentioned by the respondents. The population is primarily dependent on the market located in the center of the city for most of their food (57% of mentions). Twenty-three percent of the mothers interviewed shop every day, 50% once or twice a week, and the remainder less frequently. The weekend is the preferred time for the market, coinciding with the arrival of fresh produce and fish from the coast.

The market is the major source of vitamin A-rich foods, in fact all the selected foods are purchased from the market, with the exception of green quinoa and amaranth leaves that are collected from the fields. Cow's milk is consumed by 81% of the families. Half of this milk comes from the municipal milk distribution program, yet 42% mentioned purchasing milk in the market or in San Vicente, and 10% is brought directly from the countryside. Fish is eaten regularly, sometimes more than once a week; it is not considered an expensive food. In general, vegetables, particularly sweet potatoes, are not considered expensive foods in contrast to Chamis. However, the purchase of most of the foods depends upon the price at any given time, except for carrot and red pepper which are used daily.

Local shops are another resource for some of the dry food items (14% of mentioned sources), although they are purchased less frequently there, as they are sold at a higher price than in the market. Some eggs, chicken offal, and carrots are purchased from local shops. Some staple foods are bought in larger quantities directly from the peasants who bring produce down from the Jalca on Mondays.

Home-produced food

In contrast to Chamis, only 19% of the key food sources mentioned are home produced. This includes 11% from the fields, 7% from home gardens, and 1% home-bred animals, mainly sheep's blood on the rare occasions when an animal is killed and eaten.

Home gardens

Thirty-seven percent of respondents had home gardens in which a variety of herbs and vegetables were grown, mainly the herbs used for green soup and for flavoring other dishes. Some people had a fruit tree in their garden, others produced small amounts of carrot or squash.

There is a some interchange of herbs between neighbors when preparing the main midday meal. A few who produce larger amounts of herbs or spring onions sell them to neighbors, although most (92%) use them for their own consumption.

Green leafy among staple crops

Some members of the community own fields on the higher slopes of the hill behind San Vicente. Among the staple crops, quinoa and amaranth leaves are used by only some in San Vicente in contrast to Chamis; they are considered an inferior food. Wild herbs such as chamcua and paico (Chenopodium ambrosoides L.) grow among the maize crop and are used in soups.

Foods gathered from the wild

Apart from chamcua few herbs are collected from the wild. They are mainly those prepared as infusions so are not important sources of vitamin A; others are used as flavoring in sauces. Occasionally wild fruits, such as mulberry and Indian fig, are gathered.

Food programs

As in Chamis, participation in donated food programs is high with 67% of the respondents receiving food from these sources. Forty-four percent of mothers reported participating in community kitchens and 41% in the municipal milk distribution program for children six months to thirteen years of age and pregnant and lactating women. There are no sources of vitamin A among the donated foods, with the exception of milk from the milk distribution program. At the time of the study fresh milk was distributed daily to the children through this program in the city of Cajamarca and this was an important source of vitamin A.

Other

Many inhabitants of San Vicente retain close ties with their families who live in their places of origin and send food from time to time, depending on local production. These are mainly staple foods, mentioned as 3% of the food sources.

There is a some sharing of produce between neighbors, particularly herbs and the green leaves collected from the fields.

Seasonality

Some of these potential vitamin A sources are available all year, partly due to local production but principally because much of the produce is brought to the market from the coast twice a week, and from other nearby ecological zones. These include fish, many vegetables, such as lettuce, spinach, carrot, red pepper, and some fruit.

Some vitamin A-rich foods that are purchased from the market and yet are seasonal include fruits such as mango, that is available in February and March. Sweet potato, although available all year is cheaper in the summer months, November to April, as is papaya during September and October. Locally produced green peas are available mostly in the winter, August and September. Other seasonal vitamin A sources include the green leaves of the quinoa plant, consumed only when young in February and March, and ulluco and other wild leaves available in April and May.

Most of the herbs used to flavor main dishes are available all year round and when they grown in the home gardens are purchased inexpensively from the market. Green soup is consumed regularly, particularly during the rainy season when it is eaten two to three times a week; during the rest of the year half of the mother-respondents reported preparing it once or twice a month.

Principal differences between Chamis and San Vicente

The major difference in the source of food between San Vicente and Chamis is that the vitamin A-rich foods are purchased primarily from the market by the urban population of San Vicente, where economic resources and fluctuations in prices influence the selection and amounts of food bought. The rural population of Chamis is dependent primarily on home production, thus consumption is determined by availability. It is markedly affected by seasonality for many foods that are available at the same time during the summer months, including major vitamin A sources that are purchased. Whether these seasonal patterns of consumption permit sufficiently high levels of intake and storage in the body to protect during the leaner times remains to be determined. The vitamin A intake of the population of San Vicente is less affected by seasonality, as a wide variety of food is available in the market all year.

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