Enhancing Nutrition and Cost Efficiency in Kenyan School Meals Using Neglected and Underutilized Species and Linear Programming: A Case Study from an Informal Settlement

Neglected and Underutilized Species (NUS)—locally available, climate-resilient species—possess significant nutritional, social, and environmental benefits, yet their use, research focus, and market presence have diminished over time. Incorporating NUS into school meal programs can potentially boost childhood nutrition, promote healthy eating, encourage sustainable food production, preserve food culture and heritage, and support biodiversity conservation. School meals offered in Kenya are often monotonous and nutritionally inadequate. We conducted a case study targeting a school in an informal urban settlement in Nairobi, to demonstrate how incorporating locally grown, nutrient-rich foods into school meals can result in better nutrition for school-age children, while making significant savings for schools. Using the World Food Programme's School Meal Planner (SMP) PLUS software, the meals offered at the school were analyzed for nutrient adequacy and optimized. The optimization process was based on commodity price fluctuations and nutrient composition using local agrobiodiversity. The results show how NUS are a viable and healthy alternative to meet the recommended daily nutrient needs for school-aged children at affordable prices. The tool results showcased the effectiveness of linear programming in enabling national decision-making in efficient school feeding program planning, by designing comprehensive, affordable food baskets using local agrobiodiversity. Future research should explore implementing optimized school menus while examining broader aspects, such as school lunches’ environmental impacts and direct procurement approach opportunities that source local ingredients from smallholder farmers.