Assessment of the Support Program of Foodservice Management for Community Child Centers in Jeollanam-do, Korea

Abstract

This study aimed to evaluate the effectiveness of the foodservice management support program focusing on menu management in community child centers. The support program provided reference menus, staff training, and field consulting to 10 community child centers in the Jeollanam-do province for one month, August in 2010. One month menus were developed, based on children`s preference for menu items, foodservice personnel`s preference for food materials, and availability of local specialty foods, and offered as reference menus. In addition, staff training and field consulting focusing on menu management were conducted before and during the pilot period, respectively. To evaluate the support program, menus, foodservice personnel`s knowledge level and perceived performance in foodservice management, and children`s level of satisfaction for foodservice were analyzed before and after the support program. As a result of analysis of 222 and 210 menus of before and after the support program, respectively, the number of dishes per meal increased from five to six on average, and the proportion of meals including five food groups, which were grain, meat, vegetable, fruit, and milk and dairy product, rose from 2% to 24%. Foodservice personnel`s knowledge level regarding foodservice management increased significantly (p = 0.007), however, their perceived performance in foodservice management did not show any significant changes. Children were more satisfied with ``food`` (p = 0.001), ``sanitation`` (p = 0.001), and ``environment`` (p < 0.008) of foodservice in community child centers after the support program. In conclusion, the foodservice management support program focusing on menu management in this study was effective for improving menu quality of and children`s satisfaction with foodservice in community child centers. (Korean J Community Nutr 17(1) : 91~100, 2012)