Young Consumers' Evaluation of School Meals

ABSTRACT

This study determines the impact service quality on customer satisfaction in the school meal context. The empirical analysis reveals three dimensions of service quality (quality of food, atmosphere, and customer service), which have a high impact on customer satisfaction. A low level of satisfaction was identified but with differences between the various schools. Understanding the antecedents of pupils' satisfaction is important to policy makers, schools, and school meals providers. Due to the increasing importance of school meal programs and their high impact on nutritional status on young people, a high service quality in school meal programs is inevitable.     

Ingredient Optimization and Children’s Liking of Popcorn Seasoned with Fish Protein Powder/Omega-3 Fish Oil

Response surface methodology (Box-Behnken design) was used to optimize the seasoning ingredients of popped popcorn. Children’s liking of seasoned popcorn was also determined by 120 school children. The results indicated that seasoning of popcorn with fish protein powder and omega-3 fish oil could produce accepted snacks that would be more nutritious than the widely consumed regular popcorn. Fortification of popcorn with 9% fish protein powder and/or 6% omega-3 fish oil did not influence the sensory attributes of the prototypes. Liking test revealed that children in the age range of 6 to 12 years liked the selected fortified products. This fortification also provided another avenue for cereal snack food diversification and might be a healthy option to boost children’s nutritional intake and to increase fish protein consumption. Such products are good choices for health-conscious consumers.     

大学生就餐质量的研究 ——以江苏大学为例

随着物质生活水平的提升,当代大学生在校就餐的质量备受关注。大学生就餐方式分为食堂就餐和外卖订餐,本文从学生的主观就餐体验和食堂、外卖客观情况出发,分析了大学生的就餐质量。结果显示,虽然大学生就餐质量总体尚可,但仍有一系列的问题,主要表现在菜品味道不佳、菜品种类常年不变、价格偏高和营养结构不均衡等方面。本文从学生、高校食堂以及社会层面给出了建议,以为提高高校学生的就餐质量提供参考。     

The effects of nutritional labels on obesity

This study examines the relationship between nutritional label use and obesity using switching regression. Results for treatment effect show that nutritional labels play a role in reducing obesity among users of nutritional labels, notably among women. The average body mass index (BMI) for men who read nutritional labels is 0.12 point lower than men who do not read them, while women who are users of nutritional labels have 1.49 points lower BMI than women who do not read labels. These findings imply that health education campaigns can employ nutritional labels as one of the instruments for reducing obesity.     

Estimates of Mincerian Returns to Schooling in Nigeria

In the face of declining rates of primary and secondary school enrolment and increasing post-secondary school enrolment rates, the Nigerian government introduced the free universal basic education programme in 1999. To understand better the economic forces underlying the recent trends in school enrolment rates and appraise the new education policy from the perspective of private efficiency returns, I estimate the private returns to schooling associated with levels of educational attainment for wage and self-employed workers using data from the General Household Survey. The estimates for both men and women are small at primary and secondary levels, 2–3% and 4%, respectively, but are substantial at post-secondary education level, 10–15%. Inter-generational returns to schooling decline for primary education but rise for post-secondary education. These schooling return estimates may account for the recent trends in school enrolments. Thus, increasing public investment to encourage increased attendance in basic education is not justifiable on grounds of private efficiency, unless investments to increase school quality have higher private returns. With high private returns to post-secondary schooling, students at this level should pay tuition to recoup more of the public costs of schooling, which may be redistributed to poor families through scholarships.     

高校食堂食品安全与学生营养管理体系研究

当前食品安全问题是社会大众最关切的话题之一,随着物质生活条件的改善,人们对于食品安全和营养价值都有了更高的要求,不再是一味地追求温饱。当前高校学生在食品选择上普遍关注食品的价格、性价比、口味,而对食品的营养价值和安全没有足够的重视。尽管当前高校在食品安全和食品营养价值上已经做出了很大的改进并得到了社会大众的普遍认可,但在某些环节上仍有待提升。本文分析了太原市高校食堂食品安全与学生营养管理,针对现状提出了相应的改进措施,旨在规范高校食堂的管理,保障学生在校的饮食安全与健康。     

Supermarkets, wholesalers, and tomato growers in Guatemala

The article shows the asset‐related determinants and the impacts of the participation of small farmers in supermarkets versus traditional market channels in Guatemala. Compared to farmers selling only to the traditional market channels, farmers selling to supermarket channels are larger (but are in the upper tier of the “small farmer” category), have more capital, and are much more specialized in commercial horticulture in general and in tomatoes in particular. While they have higher yields, they also have higher input use, including use of chemicals. In fact, they severely overuse pesticides and fungicides. Moreover, these greater input expenditures mean that their profit rates are roughly similar to those of farmers in the traditional market channel. Supermarket‐channel farmers prefer the more demanding wholesale‐supermarket channel because it offers lower risks and lower transaction costs to market, a variety of quality grades of tomatoes, all year long. In turn, the supermarkets, who do not buy direct but rather source from a few specialized‐dedicated wholesalers, rely on this year‐round supply, lower transaction costs, and consistency of quality.     

The Social Returns of Agricultural Practices for Promoting Water Quality Improvement

Soil erosion leads to various degrees of soil productivity loss and to pollution when contaminants load into watercourses. Practices to conserve soil do not inevitably profit farmers; in fact, for most farmers they do not. Still, in most instances, they do yield net off-farm gains. Especially when on-farm net costs are involved, then for policy intervention purposes it becomes necessary to calculate the social return of such practices. Total off-farm returns depend on the degree of water quality improvement made, the number of water uses and users in a watershed, and society's willingness to pay for such improvement. This paper explores a new method for calculating the degree of water quality change from a loading reduction and its impact on social return. In a case study application for an Ontario watershed, water was used for only two purposes: angling and conveyance. Moreover, the degree of water quality improvement made from sediment and phosphorus reduction through modified agricultural practices was slight. This was mainly because of the presence of pollutants not necessarily originating from agriculture that prevented a substantial increase in water quality. As a consequence, in this case, off-farm benefits from such reductions were low. On the other hand, several agronomic practices resulted in positive on-farm returns.     

Do they always say no? German consumers and second‐generation GM foods

European consumers and, in particular, German consumers are known to be very critical toward the introduction of genetically modified (GM) foods. It is analyzed here whether German consumers do reject second-generation GM foods, too. Whereas first-generation GM crops induced producer-related benefits, second-generation GM crops are associated with consumer-oriented benefits like an improvement of nutritional quality. The determinants of demand for second-generation GM rapeseed oil are investigated within an online survey of 1,556 German consumers. It is elaborated how two functional properties of the product matter; that is, long-chain omega-3 fatty acids and the cholesterol-lowering effect of phytosterols. It turns out that GM rapeseed oil is neglected by 74% of all respondents. Output traits, however, will increase the probability of purchases of GM rapeseed oil. This is more the case for long-chain omega-3 fatty acids than for phytosterols.     

烹饪方法对食物营养成分的影响

随着生活品质的提高,人们越来越关注食物的品质,要求食物不仅要色香味俱全,而且烹饪后其中的营养成分也要有所保留.现阶段,食物烹饪方法有很多种,同一食物不同的烹饪方法会带给人不同的视觉和味觉体验,但也会对食物的营养成分造成不同的影响.为此,本文针对烹饪方法对食物营养成分的影响展开研究.     

Is the West really the best? Modernisation and the psychosocial dynamics of human progress and development

Scientific and political interest in measures of human progress and development is increasing, but the indicators are far from capturing all we need to know. They place Western liberal democracies at the leading edge of progress, and present them as models of development; Western nations typically occupy all but a few of the top 20 places in progress indices. However, indicators are measuring modernisation rather than optimal quality of life or well-being; modernity’s benefits are counted but its costs are underestimated. In particular, the measures do not adequately acknowledge the ‘psychosocial dynamics’ of human societies: the complex interactions and relationships between the subjective and objective worlds. Unless we pay more attention to these dynamics, we will not develop solutions which match in scale the problems they are intended to address. Indicators need to allow a transformation in our worldview and beliefs as profound as that which gave rise to modernity.     

THE CASE AGAINST COMPULSORY MINIMUM STANDARDS

Legislation to forbid the sale of goods that do not meet minimum standards imposes substantial costs on producers, distributors and consumers, but the main benefit, a reduction in search costs, is unimportant unless the standard affects health or safety. Benefits also arise when someone other than the consumer bears the cost of inferior goods. In the longer run, production levels and methods may change but economic costs will probably remain above the free market levels. In the short or long run consumers may benefit by being able to buy better quality goods at the same price, but this is unlikely so the onus is on the legislator to justify imposing compulsory minimum standards.     

Agriculture–nutrition linkages with heterogeneous,unobserved returns and costs: Insights from Tajikistan

Agriculture–nutrition linkages (ANLs) have been increasingly investigated in the literature. However, nutritional returns and costs of household agricultural production practices (APPs) in semisubsistence settings are poorly understood. We fill these knowledge gaps using pooled cross-section data sets in Tajikistan, where semisubsistence farming and undernutrition coexist despite relatively good agricultural infrastructure and education systems. Agricultural diversification, yield enhancement, production expansion are positively associated with various nutritional outcomes, particularly in areas with poor food market access. Decomposition exercises suggest that nutritional returns and costs of these APPs vary across households, and the adoption of APPs is driven by the expected nutritional returns. In Tajikistan, improving nutrition through household ANLs requires growing the smallholder agricultural sector in multiple dimensions, including diversification, intensification, and expansion, while also understanding better the pathways of ANLs and addressing bottlenecks at appropriate stages of such pathways.     

Understanding the Relationship Between Perceived Quality Cues and Quality Attributes in the Purchase of Meat in Malaysia

This study utilizes the Total Food Quality Model to gain a better understanding of how Malaysian consumers make their decision to purchase fresh/chilled meat. We examine the association between quality cues and desired values (quality attributes) with regard to food that is guaranteed Halal, safe to eat, healthy and nutritious, has a good taste, represents good value for money, and is produced in a way that protects the environment and worker welfare. The findings reveal that different quality cues assume different levels of importance when pursuing different desired values.     

贵州医科大学悯农堂学生套餐中食盐含量测定

目的:测定贵州医科大学悯农堂所售卖学生套餐的食盐含量,为预防和改善贵州医科大学在校大学生食盐摄入过量以及学校营养宣教提供科学依据。方法:连续7 d,对贵州医科大学悯农堂所售卖的学生套餐进行整群采样,采用GB 5009.44—2016中的直接沉淀法测定其氯化钠含量。结果:学生套餐中食盐含量为(0.81±0.22)g/100 g。每餐选购3种菜品时,人均食盐摄入量为(7.30±1.98)g·d^-1,选购4种菜品时为(9.72±2.64)g·d^-1。结论:贵州医科大学悯农堂学生餐人均食盐摄入量高于《中国居民膳食指南》(2016版)推荐值,建议悯农堂烹调学生餐时减少食盐用量。     

Valuing morbidity effects of wildfire smoke exposure from the 2007 Southern California wildfires

This study estimated the economic costs associated with morbidity from the wildfires that occurred in 2007 in southern California. We used the excess number of hospital admissions and emergency department visits to quantify the morbidity effects and used medical costs to estimate the economic impact. With data from 187 hospital facilities and 140 emergency departments located in five counties in southern California, we found evidence of significant acute adverse health reactions to wildfire-smoke exposure. Specifically, we found approximately 80 excess respiratory-related hospital admissions, 26 excess acute cardiovascular-related hospital admissions, nearly 760 excess respiratory-related emergency department visits, and 38 excess acute cardiovascular-related emergency department visits. We estimated that the associated medical costs were over $3.4 million. Since these cost estimates do not consider costs related to other adverse health effects, such as mortality, symptoms that were not severe enough to warrant going to the emergency room or hospital, or the costs of avoiding exposure to wildfire smoke, our estimates do not reflect the full health-related costs of wildfire smoke exposure.     

To Eat or Not to Eat: Seafood Consumption Habit Formation

Healthy development and nutritional sufficiency have long been linked to consumption of a well-balanced diet, especially in primary school age children. Seafood products have been identified as a key component of a healthy diet. The consumption habits of a balanced and sustainable diet in children needs to be examined while taking into account family and environmental factors which influence eating habit formation in young children. The family setting is the first place where children acquire examples and principles of their own eating habits. Therefore, this study explores the effects of family eating habits on seafood consumption habit formation in children. Seafood intake diaries, pictures of consumed meals, as well as in-depth interviews formed a pilot study which included four families. The collected results were thematically analyzed and underpinned by principles of the Theory of Planned Behavior, Stages of Change Model, and Social Cognitive Theory. The pilot study results revealed an array of attitudes and preferences, norms (e.g., religion and parental duty), perceived drivers (e.g., health benefits), and perceived barriers (e.g., affordability and availability) which influence the formation of sustainable eating habits in children. A range of strategies (internal and external) for assisting appropriate eating habit formation including consumption of sustainable seafood by children are discussed.     

Do Single Mothers Face Greater Constraints to Workforce Participation in Non-Metropolitan Areas?

Increasing workforce participation among single mothers is the primary goal of recent welfare reform measures. This article shows that increased workforce participation in the mid to late 1990s led to improvements in the economic well-being of non-metropolitan and metropolitan area families headed by single mothers. Differential benefits and costs of workforce participation of single mothers in non-metropolitan and metropolitan areas are then examined. Single mothers are found to face lower costs to workforce participation and receive lower hourly earnings in non-metropolitan areas than in metropolitan areas. Young children do, however, raise workforce participation costs more in non-metropolitan areas.     

How Firms Construct Price Changes: Evidence from Restaurant Responses to Increased Minimum Wages

We use price data underlying the Consumer Price Index to assess how restaurants, whose prices are generally quite sticky, respond to minimum wage increases. Aggregate prices rise, quickly, by amounts reflecting the increase in costs, and they rise more among fast food outlets and in low-wage locations. But restaurants do not construct price increases by raising all their prices by amounts reflecting the increase in wages. Instead, they raise only some prices, but by larger amounts. Prices at cluster points are less likely to be changed, and prices that were recently increased (decreased) are less (more) likely to be raised.     

研学旅行中的中小学生不健康饮食行为和管理

在现代化教育事业不断发展的过程中,素质教育备受社会各界重视。中小学生处于人生发展的重要时刻,提高核心素养尤为重要。研学旅行具有开放性、体验性、综合性、探索性的特点,使学生在体验中学习社会、生活文化,使学生的学习能力得到提高,并且锻炼其生存能力,提高学生社会责任感,对于中小学生的未来发展具有重要的现实意义。但是,目前研学旅行的开展情况并不乐观。以此,本文就对研学旅行过程学生饮食健康问题进行分析,提出针对性管理策略。