Nature of random variation in the nutritent composition of meals.

The mathematical formulation of nutrient variation in meals in presented by means of random vectors. The primary sources of nutrient variation in unit portions of menu items are identified and expressed in terms of random food-nutrient, random portion size and random ingredient composition variations. A secondary source of nutrient variation can be traced to the random selection process of combining menu items into individual meals from multiple choice menus. The separate as well as the joint effect of these sources on the total variation of the nutrient content of meals is described with the aid of variance-covariance matrices. The investigation is concluded with the formulation of multivariate probability statements concerning the adequacy of the nutrient content of meals relative to the distribution of the nutrient requirements over a given population.