# Family Meal — Instant Maize–Soya Complete Food

**Status:** Design study / development starting point. Not manufactured, not laboratory-verified, no supplier quotes. All figures are calculated targets subject to assay.

**Target group:** Adults and children from ~3 years.
**Preparation:** Add potable water or milk; no cooking *after the instant (extrusion) process has been validated*.

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## 1. Pilot formulation (per 100 kg)

| Ingredient | kg | Purpose |
|---|---:|---|
| Fully precooked / extruded whole maize flour | 67.63 | Carbohydrate, texture, local staple |
| Dehulled, heat-treated full-fat soya flour | 24.00 | Protein, fat and lysine |
| Sugar | 4.00 | Palatability; substantially less than most breakfast cereals |
| Canola / sunflower oil blend | 2.00 | Energy and essential fats |
| Dicalcium or tricalcium phosphate | 1.20 | Calcium and phosphorus |
| Potassium chloride | 0.27 | Potassium |
| Custom vitamin / mineral premix | 0.20* | Micronutrients |
| Iodised salt | 0.25 | Taste and sodium |
| Mild malt / vanilla flavour | 0.30 | Familiar cereal flavour |
| Soya lecithin | 0.15 | Mixing and mouthfeel |
| **Total** | **100.00** | |

\*The 0.20 % premix is a development starting point only. The **premix supplier must calculate the final inclusion rate** from raw-material assays, processing/shelf-life losses and the South African nutrient targets. It must never be hand-mixed from tablets.

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## 2. Estimated nutrition (subject to laboratory analysis)

| Per 100 g dry | Expected |
|---|---:|
| Energy | 380–395 kcal |
| Protein | 14.5–16 g |
| Fat | 9–10 g |
| Dietary fibre | 6–8 g |
| Added sugar | 4 g |

**Serving:** a 125 g meal ≈ **480 kcal, 18–20 g protein, 11–13 g fat**, mixed with ~250–300 ml water. Final water ratio to be set by viscosity and consumer testing.

**Micronutrient target:** ~**30 % of the SA adult / 4+ NRV per 100 g**. Someone eating ~300–350 g/day therefore approaches the daily micronutrient target *without* three excessive "100 % NRV" doses. Fortify on a **child-inclusive** basis and check every added nutrient (especially vitamin A and iron) against paediatric upper limits at 2–3 servings/day.

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## 3. Ingredient rationale

- **Maize** — locally familiar; ~R7–R9/kg in large bags (Shoprite listed 10 kg at R89.99). Extruded/precooked for instant dispersion.
- **Whole soya (not isolate)** — corrects maize's low lysine at a fraction of isolate cost; heat treatment inactivates trypsin inhibitors and lipoxygenase.
- **Canola in the oil blend** — supplies alpha-linolenic omega-3; soya already contributes linoleic omega-6.
- **Deliberately omitted** — milk powder, inulin, whey isolate, MODUCARE and branded additives (cost without proportionate mass-feeding benefit).
- **Peanut excluded from the core product** — peanut-allergy risk and added aflatoxin-control burden.

Protein-quality note: soya (lysine-rich) complements maize (sulfur-amino-acid-adequate, lysine-limited). With soya ≈ 24 % of the mass supplying the majority of protein, the blend clears the ~35–40 % soy-of-protein floor for lysine adequacy; estimated PDCAAS ≈ 0.85. Confirm by amino-acid assay.

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## 4. Indicative affordability (targets, not quotes)

| Stage | Target |
|---|---:|
| Raw ingredients | ~R11–R14/kg |
| Processed & packed ex-factory | ~R18–R24/kg |
| Large-volume public / NGO procurement | R25–R30/kg |
| 125 g meal | ~R3.10–R3.75 |

Comparators: FutureLife ≈ R80 / 750 g; plain instant maize porridge ≈ R22–R30/kg.

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## 5. Process & safety requirements before any claim

1. **Instant claim** requires validated starch gelatinisation *and* a documented microbial kill step (extrusion), a reconstitution/mixing test, and a shelf-life study — not a relabel.
2. Twin-screw extrusion cooks/gelatinises maize+soya and inactivates soya anti-nutrients; **dry-blend the premix, oil, sugar and flavour after extrusion** (post-extrusion coating) to protect heat-labile vitamins.
3. Target water activity a_w < 0.4, moisture < 5 %; foil-laminate, light/moisture-barrier pack; antioxidant (mixed tocopherols) to protect the oil and vitamin A. Indicative shelf life 9–12 months — confirm by study.
4. HACCP plan; **aflatoxin control** on maize and soya inputs; per-batch micronutrient QC on retained samples over shelf life (vitamins A, C, folate, thiamine degrade).
5. Allergens on pack: **contains soya**; declare cereal/gluten cross-contact for shared lines.
6. Label micronutrient claims substantiated per SA labelling regulations; %NRV declared with a child-serving footnote.

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*Comparative lineage: CSIR PVM (maize–soya protein-vitamin-mineral food), ProNutro (~67 % maize / 13 % soya / 9 % soya isolate), FutureLife Smart food, and UNICEF Super Cereal. This design keeps the proven maize–soya template, cuts sugar to 4 g, uses local canola/sunflower oil rather than imported palm-based fat powder, and drops the protein isolate.*