Ban on fishing, not ban on protein - School feeding caterers told

Caterers of the Ghana School Feeding Programme (GSFP) have been warned not to take undue advantage of the ban placed on fishing activities by the Government, to deny the children the right amount of protein in the food they prepare.

The acting National Coordinator of the GSFP, Dr. Gertrude Quashigah who issued the warning in an interview in Accra, advised the caterers to consider soy as another form of protein that would enable them to prepare nutritious meal for the beneficiary pupils.

She noted, Textured Soy Product (TSP) which is made into chewable meat or chicken, would serve as chicken or fish replacement and provide the needed protein for the children and keep them healthy.

The Textured Soy Protein is a healthy and high-quality protein source that contains all essential amino acids needed for growth, and comes without fat and has no cholesterol and with little or no saturated fat.

Already, caterers under the programme have been introduced to the use of Textured Soy Product, which is being produced locally by YEDENT.

According to Mrs. Quarshigah, the TSP, for instance, was more affordable and more convenient for the caterers to use, as compared to chicken or fish.

“One kilo of Textured Soy Protein sells at GH₵20 or GH₵25 and it can be used to cook for more than 100 children. So if you buy let say 10 kilos of the soy you can use it to cook for more than 1000 children. This means that those caterers with high number of children will highly benefit from using the TSP, and they can even mix it with eggs and vegetables to make it nutritiously balanced; with any accompaniment like banku, rice, yam, plantain or eba,” she said.   

Dr. Quashigah, said her priority is to ensure the children become the main focus of every activity of the School Feeding Programme. 

The Nutrition Specialist further advised the caterers to desist from using only tomatoes and onion stew all the time to serve the children, which practice she indicated, is suicidal for the growth of the pupils.