Nutritionist, Gadchiroli, Maharashtra

Role: Nutritionist, Gadchiroli, Maharashtra
Experience: 5-7 years
Salary band: Upto 9 LPA

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Role Overview:

The Organization is seeking an experienced Nutritionist to design, implement, and monitor comprehensive child nutrition interventions across our childcare centers. The objective is to ensure that all enrolled children receive adequate, age-appropriate, safe, and culturally acceptable nutrition.

The role focuses heavily on meal planning, nutrient adequacy, dietary diversity, and the prevention of undernutrition. A key requirement is ensuring that menus are locally contextualized, cost-effective, and operationally feasible within the specific context of the Gadchiroli district.

Key Roles & Responsibilities:

1. Age-Specific Nutrition Planning

• Menu Design: Develop age-wise meal plans for infants and young children (6–12 months, 1–3 years, and 3–6 years) aligned with national and global child nutrition guidelines.
• Nutrient Adequacy: Ensure meals meet energy, protein, fat, and micronutrient requirements, with specific attention to iron, calcium, vitamin A, and zinc.
• Feeding Protocols: Define feeding frequency, portion sizes, and food consistency appropriate for each developmental stage.

2. Localized & Seasonal Menu Development

• Contextualization: Design menus using locally available, seasonal, and culturally familiar foods specific to the Gadchiroli district to improve acceptability and sustainability.
• Indigenous Integration: Integrate traditional and indigenous foods with high nutritional value into daily meals.
• Adaptability: Adapt menus based on seasonal variation, market access, and cost constraints while maintaining nutritional standards.

3. Dietary Diversity & Meal Quality

• Food Groups: Ensure the inclusion of multiple food groups (cereals, pulses, vegetables, fruits, eggs/milk, fats) in daily meals.
• Cooking Practices: Improve meal quality through appropriate cooking methods that minimize nutrient loss.
• Nutrient Absorption: Recommend food combinations that enhance nutrient absorption (e.g., pairing iron-rich foods with Vitamin C sources).

4. Special Nutrition Needs & Risk Management

• Risk Identification: Identify children at risk of undernutrition, poor weight gain, or growth faltering through nutrition records and field observations.
• Intervention: Develop nutrition-dense meal adaptations for vulnerable children without compromising overall program costs.
• Referrals: Support referral pathways for children requiring medical nutrition support as per established protocols.

5. Food Safety, Hygiene & Operations

• Standards Compliance: Ensure adherence to food safety, hygiene, and sanitation standards in food preparation, storage, and serving.
• Standardization: Standardize recipes, ingredient quantities, and preparation methods to ensure consistency across all centers.
• WASH Monitoring: Monitor safe water use and cleanliness related to feeding and meal preparation areas.

6. Growth Monitoring & Data Analysis

• Surveillance: Oversee accurate growth monitoring (weight, height/length, MUAC) and analyze nutrition trends.
• Data-Driven Decisions: Use growth and attendance data to revise meal plans and nutrition strategies.
• Reporting: Maintain and review nutrition-related documentation and indicators to track program impact.

7. Cost-Effective Planning

• Budget Management: Design meal plans that balance nutritional adequacy with budgetary limits.
• Efficiency: Promote local sourcing and bulk planning to reduce food costs without compromising quality; advise teams on efficient food utilization and minimizing wastage.

8. Holistic Integration

• Child Development: Ensure nutrition interventions support early childhood growth, immunity, and cognitive development.
• Convergence: Align nutrition services with health, hygiene, and caregiving practices at centers and support convergence with government nutrition norms where applicable.

Qualifications & Experience:

Education:

• Master's degree in Nutrition, Public Health Nutrition, Food & Nutrition, or Home Science (Preferred).

Experience:

• 5–7 years of relevant work experience in nutrition programs, training, or field implementation.
• Experience working with NGOs or Government programs is highly preferred.

Knowledge & Skills:

• Technical Knowledge: Sound knowledge of Child Nutrition, Infant and Young Child Feeding (IYCF), Growth Monitoring, Supplementary Nutrition, and Food Safety.
• Holistic Understanding: Understanding of Early Childhood Care and Education (ECCE) linkages with nutrition, health, WASH, gender, child protection, and community participation.
• Languages: Proficiency in Hindi and English is required. Knowledge of the local language (Marathi/Gondi) is essential for effective fieldwork.

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Hiring Note: Applications will be reviewed on a rolling basis. This job is first posted on Jan 30, 2026, on Ground Zero

For any questions, ping us on WhatsApp chat: +91-8058331557