Introduction

Peru, situated on the Pacific coast of South America, comprises three major ecological regions: the coastal desert plains, the highland region of the Andean mountains, and the expansive jungle area on the east side of the Andes. Although the country produces a variety of natural products, poverty, health, and nutrition problems affect a large proportion of the population. Within Peru the population of the highland region is most affected. Cajamarca is situated in the northern highlands in the region Nor Oriental del Mara(Map 5). This region has one of the highest levels of poverty and has been selected as a priority zone by the government for providing services and promoting development.

Interventions to improve the vitamin A status of the population are part of the government's nutrition strategy. Clinical deficiency of vitamin A is rarely observed although there is considerable evidence of subclinical deficiency in children. Consequently, among the possible strategies for intervention, improving the intake of vitamin A from dietary sources is of prime importance, particularly since much of the population has access to potential vitamin A food sources, at least during certain times of the year.

The highland areas are among those where vitamin A deficiencies, as measured by serum retinol levels and low dietary intakes, have been described. For the community assessment of natural foods sources of vitamin A two sites were selected in the department of Cajamarca: one rural population, the Comunidad Campesino (peasant community) of Chamis, and one urban, the suburb (barrio) of San Vicente. As well as an evaluation of each of the sites this permitted a comparison of feeding patterns related to vitamin A between urban and rural communities.

MAP 5. The FES Protocol was Tested in Both an Urban and a Rural site in the Department of Cajamarca, Peru