Key messages
Inadequate child nutrition during the first ‘1000 days’ is widespread in Cambodia, resulting in a high prevalence of child malnutrition. Access to processed complementary food in packages (PCFP) may support caretakers in improving diet of young children. This study aimed to evaluate the caretakers’ preferences and willingness‐to‐pay (WTP) for PCFP in Cambodia. The study was conducted in urban and rural settings, involving 520 caretakers with children aged 7–24 months in Phnom Penh (urban) and Prey Veng (rural). Four PCFPs were included: a commercial brand, a social‐commercial brand, a worldwide distributed fortified complementary food aid product (CSB++) and an experimental fortified rice‐and‐fish‐based PCFP developed in Cambodia (WF‐L). Sensory analysis was conducted for all products, stated WTP was assessed for three products (excluding CSB++) and actual WTP experiment was conducted on WF‐L only. Our results show that overall, WF‐L was preferred by the rural participants over food aid CSB++. Further improvements in the organoleptic qualities of WF‐L should focus on consistency and taste. The participants were, on average, willing to pay 1,667 Cambodian riel (KHR, $0.4) and 1,192 KHR ($0.3) in urban and rural settings, respectively, for 35 g of WF‐L. We also found that despite being nutritionally inadequate, most participants considered homemade porridge to be healthier, more practical and preferred by the children. Therefore improving the quality of homemade foods merits urgent consideration. When applying PCFP in nutrition programmes as a supplementary option to homemade complementary foods, locally produced products could be a more viable supplementary option than global food aid.
Situated in the heart of the Mekong River basin, the biodiversity of Cambodian freshwaters is high, with around 475 fish species. Fisheries have shaped Cambodian culture, including traditional diets. Fish and other aquatic animals are the main and culturally preferred animal-source foods in a population vulnerable to food insecurity and malnutrition. The food culture of consuming fish with the bones and head is nutritionally valuable, providing high-quality nutrients. The objective of this study was to assess the consumption of fish and other aquatic animals among mothers and their young children, with details on species, types of processing, and parts consumed. We interviewed 100 mothers in Prey Veng Province, Cambodia, on fish and other aquatic animals consumed by themselves and their children (one child per mother) during the preceding rainy season. To support recall of fish consumption, we used 157 cards with pictures of fish and other aquatic animal species and 11 cards with processed fish. Our results showed that species diversity in mothers’ diets was higher than that of their children; on average, mothers and children consumed 69 and 14 species of fish, eight and one species of other aquatic animals, respectively, in the preceding rainy season. On average, mothers reported they knew of 113 fish species and 14 other species available in their surrounding environments. Consuming fish with the head and bones is common among mothers but not children. Our study showed that the rich biodiversity of aquatic animals in the Mekong River is reflected in the food culture of mothers, but not in children. Consequently, children in their most critical period, do not harness the nutritional benefits from the rich aquatic biodiversity. We suggest policymakers recommend feeding young children with a larger diversity of aquatic animals and promoting fish processing to allow young children to benefit from the rich aquatic diversity and their nutrient-rich parts.
This brochure represents a simplified version of the Co-management Plan for Fisheries in the North Rupununi. It presents the vision on how communities would like to see their fishing grounds managed in collaboration with the government Fisheries Department.The SWM Programme is a major international initiative that aims to improve the conservation and sustainable use of wildlife in forest, savannah and wetland ecosystems. It is funded by the European Union with co-funding from the French Facility for Global Environment (FFEM) and the French Development Agency (AFD). Projects are being piloted and tested with governments, national partners and communities in 16 participating countries. The initiative is coordinated by a dynamic consortium of four partners, namely the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), the Center for International Forestry Research and World Agroforestry (CIFOR-ICRAF), the French Agricultural Research Centre for International Development (CIRAD) and the Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS).