WO2020127308A1

WO2020127308A1 - A method and a computer program for calculating a recommendation for composing a meal

Info

Publication number: WO2020127308A1
Application number: PCT/EP2019/085704
Authority: WO
Inventors: Per SIMRE
Original assignee: Take Off Food Sverige Ab
Priority date: 2018-12-18
Filing date: 2019-12-17
Publication date: 2020-06-25
Also published as: SE1851600A1

Abstract

A computer-implemented method for calculating a recommendation for composing a meal from a plurality of food units, the plurality of food units comprising a plurality of flavor types, wherein all units of a flavor type have similar weight and similar nutritional composition, the method comprising, by a processing unit: receiving diner characteristics, the diner characteristics comprising a weight and an age relating to a diner; receiving meal type data; retrieving a nutritional recommendation based on the diner characteristics and the meal type data, the nutritional recommendation comprising a recommended intake of calories, protein, fat, and carbohydrates for a meal of the meal type, which is consumed by a diner with the diner characteristics; determining a set of combinations of units which meet the nutritional recommendation, each combination of units in the set comprising at least a first number of units of a first flavor type and a second number of units of a second flavor type; and, presenting at least one combination of units of the determined set of combinations of units as the recommendation for composing a meal.

Description

A METHOD AND A COMPUTER PROGRAM FOR CALCULATING A RECOMMENDATION FOR COMPOSING A MEAL

TECHNICAL FIELD The present invention relates, in general, to methods and computer programs for calculating meal compositions.

BACKGROUND

In order to live a healthy life, consumers often want to follow nutritional recommendations. Such recommendations may be based on medical studies. Nutritional recommendations may also be part of dietary guidelines distributed by governments or health organizations. A nutritional recommendation may comprise a recommended intake of calories, protein, fat, and carbohydrates. The recommended intake may e.g. be per day or per meal. Information about the nutritional composition, in terms of e.g. calories per weight unit, protein per weight unit, fat per weight unit, and carbohydrates per weight unit, of different food products, e.g. pasta, tomato, and minced meat, may be found in tables. When the consumer cooks a dish, e.g. a pasta Bolognese, from a number of food products, the consumer may calculate the nutritional composition of the dish from the weight of the different ingredients and the table. The nutritional composition may then be compared to the nutritional recommendations. Alternatively, ready-made dishes, e.g. frozen or tinned, may be bought, wherein the nutritional composition of the dish is listed on the package.

In particular, parents may desire to provide meals with a proper nutritional composition to their children. Baby food is often sold in pre configured compositions which should meet nutritional recommendations. However, in the pre-configured compositions, there is a limited degree of freedom for the parent to compose the meal. SUMMARY

It is an object of the invention to provide a method for calculating a recommendation for composing a meal, wherein the method facilitates a healthy and varied diet. These and other objects of the invention are at least partly met by the invention as defined in the independent claims. Preferred embodiments are set out in the dependent claims.

According to a first aspect of the invention, there is provided a computer-implemented method for calculating a recommendation for composing a meal from a plurality of food units, wherein the plurality of food units comprises a plurality of flavor types, wherein each food unit of a flavor type is a discrete unit of food with a flavor defined by the flavor type, wherein all units of a flavor type have similar weight and similar nutritional

composition, the method comprising, by a processing unit:

receiving diner characteristics, the diner characteristics comprising a weight and an age of a diner, wherein the diner is the intended consumer of the meal;

receiving meal type data, the meal type data comprising information regarding the meal type, the meal type being the intended eating occasion of the meal;

retrieving a nutritional recommendation based on the diner

characteristics and the meal type data, wherein the nutritional

recommendation comprises a recommended intake of calories, a

recommended intake of protein, a recommended intake of fat, and a recommended intake of carbohydrates for a meal of the meal type, which is consumed by a diner with the diner characteristics;

determining a set of combinations of units which meet the nutritional recommendation, each combination of units in the set comprising at least a first number of units of a first flavor type and a second number of units of a second flavor type, the first and the second flavor types being different, wherein a nutritional composition of the combination of units meet the nutritional recommendation; and,

presenting at least one combination of units of the determined set of combinations of units as the recommendation for composing a meal.

There are signs that ready-made food is a growing market. Some consumer groups may eat mostly ready-made food. For example, small children may eat mostly canned baby food. Another example may be elderly people who are no longer capable of cooking a meal from scratch. It may be particularly important for these consumer groups that their meals meet a nutritional recommendation. Small children may need meals living up to a certain nutritional recommendation because they are growing. Elderly may need meals living up to a certain nutritional recommendation because they have a fragile health. People may need meals living up to a certain nutritional recommendation because they are on a diet. Ready-made meals with a specified nutritional composition on the packaging may make it easier to ensure that the meal meet a nutritional recommendation. In the following, food, food preparation, and food distribution is discussed using baby food by way of example. However, it should be understood that the concepts may apply to any food.

It is a realization by the inventors that the number of ready-made meals one distributer can supply may be limited due to constraints on the production facilities and on the supply chain. For example, it may not be commercially viable to supply more than e.g. a selection of 15 different variations of baby food meals. For the consumer this may result in a difficulty to provide a child with a varied diet which fulfills the nutritional recommendations, especially if the child is allergic or picky. For example, if the child is allergic to gluten the selection of baby food meals may easily shrink by half. Furthermore, if the child cannot or will not eat one particular component of the ready-made meal, such as e.g. pasta, then other components, such as e.g. Bolognese sauce, may not be accessible because the ready-made meals come in a mixed form. The child may love rice Bolognese, unconventional as it may be, but cannot have it since Bolognese sauce always come with pasta.

An advantage of the inventive concept may thus be that it facilitates a nutritional and varied diet. When the meals are broken down to flavor types a large variation of meals may be provided to the end-consumer without the manufacturer having to deal with an excessive number of different packages. A flavor type may herein contain a single ingredient, e.g. carrot puree, fish or pasta, or a combination of ingredients, e.g. vegetable stew or Bolognese sauce. The flavor type may be in a cooked form or in a raw form. The flavor type may be in a liquid form, puree form, solid form, or in a combination of these forms. A flavor type unit may be configured to be stored at room temperature, at refrigerator temperatures or at freezer temperatures. In some embodiments the food units may be frozen food pellets. Frozen food pellets may have the advantage that waste is reduced as the pellets may not need to be individually packed. One package may contain several frozen food pellets of a first flavor type while another package may contain several frozen food pellets of a second flavor type.

As discussed above, there are a number of advantages of distributing food in food units, e.g. the manufacturer may provide a freedom to compose meals to the user without having to handle excessive packages. According to the invention, recommended meal compositions are provided which enables food to be distributed in form of food units while a consumer may still very easily compose meals so as to meet nutritional recommendations.

Thus, the invention may make it easier to compose a meal which meets nutritional recommendations as a set of combinations of units is provided, wherein all of the combinations of units meet the nutritional recommendations, from which one may choose. The set of combinations of units may e.g. be presented as a list on a smartphone screen. One does not have to try various combinations of ingredients and calculate the combined nutritional composition of the meal from the nutritional composition of the individual ingredients. Such an approach may be time consuming and difficult since it may take several tries to get several different aspects of the nutritional recommendation right, e.g. getting both the calorie content, protein content, fat content, and carbohydrate content right. Once a combination of units has been chosen, e.g. three units of rice, two units of chicken and two units of peas, the meal can easily be composed on a plate and served directly or cooked, e.g. in a microwave oven. The different flavor types of the food units may be mixed together or left separately depending on the preference of the intended consumer of the meal. Some children may prefer to not mix flavors. The fact that the method outputs a number of units, rather than a weight or a volume, for the different flavor types may make it easier to prepare the meal as no scales or measuring cups may be needed. Furthermore, deciding whether one has enough of the different ingredients at home may be easier. For example, checking if you have three units of a certain kind in a package is easier than pouring the content in a measuring cup, only to find that there is too little. The invention may thus make it possible to distribute food in a form where the consumer can prepare the meal and find the nutritional

composition of the meal as easily as with a ready-made meal but wherein the consumer still has a large freedom in varying the meals. The invention may therefore facilitate a way of cooking which combines the advantages of ready made meals with the advantages of home cooking. Another advantage of the inventive concept may be that it reduces waste. Ready-made meals generally come in certain sizes, e.g. baby food cans in sizes suitable for 6-9 month babies, 9-12 month babies etc. It may often be the case that the child does not eat the entire can, the child may e.g. eat 2/3 or 4/3 of a can, and the rest of the opened can or cans may be discarded as it is not enough for a full meal. The reason for the child not eating the entire can may be that the child is between two sizes of baby food cans or that the child of a certain age and weight needs an amount of food which is not reflected by the standardized baby cans. For example, a can intended for 9-12 month old children may be supposed to provide food according to the nutritional recommendations for any 9-12 month old child. However, a large 12 month baby may require a different amount of food than a small 9 month old baby. By dividing the meal into several units it may be easier to provide the child with an amount of food which is closer to what the child can be expected to eat while still ensuring a meal which meets the nutritional recommendation. Furthermore, it may be easier to prepare e.g. half a meal for the child to start with if you know that the meal should be e.g. four units of mashed potato and four units of fish. Half of the units may stay in the freezer and be cooked once the child has eaten the first half. The same concepts apply to adult food as well. Ready-made meals for adults generally come in one single size which is supposed to work for a large span of body sizes and types. The inventive concept may ensure that an adult can prepare an amount of food suitable to him or her.

A further advantage of the inventive concept may be that it is easier to customize a meal. The meal may be customized in terms of which flavor combinations are represented. It may also be customized in terms of ensuring that the amount of food is suitable. It may also be customized in terms of ensuring that the nutritional composition is suitable for a certain age and weight of an intended consumer. It may also be customized in terms of ensuring that the meal is suitable for an intended consumer who is allergic.

A further advantage of the inventive concept may be that it is easy to achieve an accurate nutritional composition of a customized meal. When the nutritional composition of a meal is calculated using e.g. tables there may be an uncertainty in the nutritional composition of the different components of the meal. For example, the table may specify the nutritional composition of potatoes while in fact different types of potatoes may have slightly different nutritional composition. The inventive concept may provide a method wherein the nutritional composition of each unit is predefined. Furthermore, the method may provide a composition of a meal which is easy to implement without adding any measuring inaccuracies. A combination of units may comprise a few integer number of units of different flavor types. It may be extremely hard to make a mistake when counting e.g. four or five food units of a certain flavor type. In contrast it may be easier to introduce errors when you weigh an amount of an ingredient in a measuring cup and part of the ingredient stays in the measuring cup when you plate up. Furthermore, plating up integer numbers of food units may be done quickly. Thus, the invention facilitates rapid preparation of an easy-cook meal.

It should be understood that the method may be implemented in any type of computer product. It may e.g. be implemented in a smartphone.

It should be understood that the term“food unit” should be construed as a small volume of food, wherein the meal is composed of a plurality of units. One flavor component of the meal may be composed of one or several units of a certain flavor type. The weight of a unit may be such that the number of units needed for composing a meal is within an interval which is easily countable for the person preparing the meal while at the same time giving a fine enough resolution in the nutritional composition that can be prepared. The weight of the units may e.g. be such that each flavor type in the different combinations of units is represented by e.g. 1 to 20 units or e.g.

1 to 10 or e.g. 2 to 6 units. The weight of the units may also be such that no more than a pre-set total number of units is needed for the combination of units. For example, all the combinations of units in the set of combinations of units which is presented as the recommendation for composing a meal comprise at most a total of 30 units, or 50% of the combinations of units comprise between 3 and 20 units. It should also be understood that units of different flavor types may have different weight. For example, fish units may weigh 20 g while carrot units weigh 15 g.

The different units of a certain flavor type may have similar weight. It should be understood that similar weight may mean that the weight follows a statistical distribution. The statistical distribution may have a mean weight and a standard deviation. The standard deviation may be e.g. 10% of the mean weight or some other percentage. Thus for a carrot unit which nominally weighs 15 g the standard deviation may be 1.5 g. The different units of a flavor type may have similar nutritional composition. It should be understood that similar nutritional composition may mean that the weight of the different nutritional components, e.g. protein, fat, carbohydrates, in the units follow statistical distributions. A statistical distribution for one nutritional component, e.g. fat, may have a mean weight and a standard deviation. The standard deviation may be e.g. 10% of the mean weight or some other percentage. In a similar manner other nutritional components such as e.g. calories may follow a statistical distribution. The number of calories in a unit may have a mean value and a standard deviation. The units may also be configured such that other nutritional components such as e.g. vitamins, minerals, trace elements, saturated fat, non-saturated fat, essential fatty acids, probiotics, fibers, sugar, or cholesterol are similar for units of the same flavor type.

The method for calculating a recommendation for composing a meal from a plurality of food units may utilize the fact that food units with a fixed weight and fixed nutritional composition can simplify the calculation. The method may thus be implemented in computer products with lower

processing power. It may be sufficient to try a finite number of combinations of units in order to produce a set of combinations of units which meet the nutritional recommendation.

The diner characteristics may be received in various ways. For example, if the method is implemented in a smartphone the diner

characteristics may be entered using the smartphone keyboard. The diner characteristics may also be stored in a computer memory from which they may be received. The diner characteristics may comprise a weight and an age relating to a diner, wherein the diner is an intended consumer of the meal. It should be understood that the weight may refer to the weight of the person who is about to eat the meal. It should also be understood that the weight may refer to e.g. an ideal weight or to an intermediate goal weight. For example, an underweight child at 10 kg with a higher ideal weight, wherein the ideal weight may be based on the child’s height, may want to use 1 1 kg as diner characteristic weight for a month and then increase it further until the ideal weight is reached.

The meal type data may be received in various ways. For example, if the method is implemented in a smartphone the meal type data may be entered using the smartphone keyboard. The meal type data may also be received in other ways, e.g. based on the current time according to the smartphone or based on previous meals recorded by the smartphone. The meal type data may comprise information regarding the meal type. It should be understood that meal type may refer to different meals which according to nutritional recommendations should have different nutritional compositions. It should be understood that the meal type may be selected e.g. from a group comprising: breakfast, lunch, or dinner.

The nutritional recommendation may be retrieved from a database, e.g. a database storing nutritional recommendations for diners of different ages and weights. The nutritional recommendation may also be retrieved from a calculation according to a given equation. It may also be retrieved from a combination of a database look-up and a calculation. The nutritional recommendation may be based on the diner characteristics and the meal type data. It should be understood that the nutritional recommendation may comprise a recommended intake of calories, a recommended intake of protein, a recommended intake of fat, and a recommended intake of carbohydrates for a meal of the meal type. It should also be understood that the nutritional recommendation may comprise a recommended intake of vitamins, minerals, trace elements, saturated fat, non-saturated fat, essential fatty acids, probiotics, fibers, sugar, or cholesterol. It should be understood that the recommendation may be a recommendation for a specific type of meal, e.g. breakfast, lunch or dinner. It should also be understood that the recommendation may be a recommendation regarding a daily intake, a weekly intake or an intake relating to another time period. It should be understood that the recommendation may be a minimum amount or a maximum amount. It should also be understood that nutritional

recommendation may comprise a recommended ratio between different nutritional components, e.g. a ratio between saturated fat and non-saturated fat. It should also be understood that the nutritional recommendation may be based not only on the weight and age relating to a diner, other parameters may also be included. For example, the nutritional recommendation may further be based on information regarding what diseases or allergies the diner has. A person with short bowel syndrome may need a diet that avoids high fat food. A person with short bowel syndrome may also be deficient in e.g.

vitamin A, D, E, K, B12 as well as zinc, magnesium, calcium, selenium. A person recently diagnosed with coeliac disease may be deficient in fiber, iron, calcium, magnesium etc. The nutritional recommendation may relate both to the nutritional composition of the food and the weight of the food. For example, an underweight person who cannot eat a lot per meal, perhaps due to hiatal hernia, may need a diet which has a high calorie value per food weight unit. The nutritional recommendation may also be based on other factors such as e.g. how often and how hard the diner exercises.

Determining a set of combinations of units which meet the nutritional recommendation may be done in various ways. For example, pre-calculated unit combinations may be stored in a database together with the nutritional compositions of the pre-calculated unit combinations. A set of combinations of units may be determined by a search in the database for combinations which meet the nutritional recommendation. Another example may be that nutritional data for the individual flavor types is stored in a database. The set of combinations of units may then be calculated based on the nutritional data for the individual flavor types. For example, a first number of units of a first flavor type may be chosen, e.g. chosen randomly or based on some pre-determined constraint, a second number of units of a second flavor type may then be calculated such that a meal composed of the first number of units of the first flavor type plus the second number of units of the second flavor type meets the nutritional recommendation. More than two flavor types may of course be included. Determining a set of combinations of units may also be done by accessing a database with information regarding both the nutritional composition of pre-calculated unit combinations as well as the nutritional composition of individual flavor types. Determining a set of combinations of units may also be done by a combination of accessing a database and performing calculations relating to at least one of: the diner characteristics, the meal type data or the nutritional recommendation.

Determining a set of combinations of units may also include accounting for an amount of food eaten in a previous meal. For example, if a

recommendation regarding a daily intake is divided into recommendations for different types of meals, and if the diner eats less in one meal than the recommendation specifies, then the method may adjust the determined set of combinations of units for the following meals such that the recommendation regarding the daily intake is still met. For example, by increasing the numbers of food units in the following meals compared to the numbers that would be used if the diner had eaten the recommended amount in the previous meal.

Determining a set of combinations of units may also account for the diner eating other types of meals than meals based on food units. For example, if the diner has previously eaten a meal based on conventional food the method may further comprise downloading nutritional data, e.g. nutritional compositions, for the eaten conventional food items. Thus, the determined set of combinations of units may be based on nutritional data for previously eaten conventional meals.

The determining may provide a set of at least two combinations of units, each combination meeting the nutritional recommendation. Thus, different combinations are determined. From the set of determined

combinations, at least one combination may be presented. Thus, a first combination in the set may be presented to a user. By a set of combinations being determined, a new combination may be immediately presented as another alternative recommendation, in response to the user rejecting the first recommended combination being presented.

Presenting the determined set of combinations of units may be done e.g. as a list on a smartphone screen. The set of combinations of units may be presented by another device than the device doing the calculations. For example, the set of combinations of units may be determined by calculations on a server but the determined set of combinations of units is presented by a smartphone.

According to an embodiment, the method further comprises:

receiving a meal restriction, the meal restriction being a constraint on the recommendation for composing the meal;

wherein combinations of units which do not satisfy the meal restriction are excluded from the determined set of combinations of units.

An advantage may be that the meal is easily customized. Another advantage may be that it saves time when you know that the determined combinations of units adhere to the restriction. For example, when you have a craving for coriander you do not need to go through several packages to see if that specific ingredient is present. Instead you may be presented with a list comprising e.g. the two combinations of: fried fish, curry sauce and rice; and chicken, stir fried vegetables and noodles, wherein both combinations include coriander. More than two combinations may of course be included. Another advantage may be that the interference of different nutritional components may be enhanced or reduced. For example, the meal restriction may take into account when the uptake of one nutritional component depends on another nutritional component.

It should be understood that the constraint may be either that the meal should or should not contain a certain unit type. It should be understood that a set of combinations of units may be determined followed by the removal of combination of units which should be excluded. It should also be understood that a set of combinations of units may be determined in a manner that automatically excludes unwanted unit types. For example, if the determined set of combinations of units is retrieved by a search in a database of pre calculated unit combinations the search may be configured such that combinations including unwanted unit types are automatically excluded.

It should also be understood that the constraint may be that certain combinations of units should be excluded. For example, combinations of fish and rice should be excluded but combinations of fish and potatoes or chicken and rice are allowed. It should also be understood that the constraint may be that certain combinations of nutritional components should be excluded. For example, consumption of fibers or oxalates may block the body’s ability to absorb some minerals, e.g. iron, zinc, magnesium, calcium and phosphorus. A diner may want to avoid fibers and oxalates in combination with these minerals but otherwise not. It should also be understood that the constraint may be that certain combinations of nutritional components should have a certain ratio. For example, some nutritional components may aid the bodily uptake of other nutritional components. Vitamin C may aid the uptake of iron, vitamin D may aid the uptake of calcium. A meal restriction constraint may be to ensure that there is enough of the aiding nutritional component in relation to the nutritional component which uptake one wants to enhance.

The meal restriction may be a restriction which should always be followed. For example, when the diner is allergic to a certain food. The meal restriction may also be a restriction which is tied to a certain time. For example, on Mondays the child is served fish for lunch at the daycare center so dinner should not contain fish on Mondays. The meal restriction may also be set for a specific meal. For example, right now I would like to have a vegetarian meal. The meal restriction may be stored in a computer memory. The meal restriction may also be entered on the occasion. It should also be understood that the meal restriction may be calculated, e.g. based on previous meals such that repetition of meals or similar meals are avoided.

According to an embodiment, the meal restriction comprises at least one flavor type the meal should not contain. An advantage may be that flavor types which the diner dislikes or is allergic to may be excluded.

According to an embodiment, the at least one flavor type the meal should not contain is based on a list of allergies of the diner, the list of allergies being retrieved from a computer memory. An advantage may be that allergic reactions may be avoided. This may potentially save lives or reduce discomfort for allergic diners. A further advantage may be that it simplifies composing a meal for an allergic diner. Instead of having to look at several packages of ingredients or several packages of ready-made food to see what possibilities one has for composing the meal one may only need to look at a determined set of combinations of units wherein the determined set already has been checked for allergens. Storing the allergies in a list in a computer memory may have the advantage that flavor types the meal should not contain may be excluded from the determined set of combinations quickly and with limited requirements on computational power. A list may also be changed quickly and dynamically.

The list may be referenced every time a set of combinations of units is determined, thereby reducing the risk of an allergic diner being served a meal he or she should not eat.

It should be understood that a flavor type may comprise a combination of ingredients. It may be enough for one ingredient to be on the list of allergies to constrain the recommendation for composing the meal such that it does not contain that flavor type. It should also be understood that an amount of an allergen below a threshold value may or may not be allowed. For example, in the case of the diner not being very allergic to a certain allergen, trace amounts of that allergen may be allowed. The list of allergies may further comprise information regarding how serious the different allergies are. Thus the threshold for a certain allergen may be set according to how intolerant the diner is to that allergen.

According to an embodiment, the at least one flavor type the meal should not contain is based on a list of previous meals eaten by of the diner, the list of previous meals being retrieved from a computer memory. An advantage may be that repetition of meals or similar meals are avoided.

According to an embodiment, the meal restriction comprises at least one flavor type the meal should contain. An advantage may be that flavor types which the diner likes may be included. Another advantage may be that if the diner has a deficiency in a certain nutritional component this may be mitigated by selecting certain flavor types which may help to remedy the deficiency.

According to an embodiment, the meal restriction comprises a maximum cost of the meal. An advantage may be that allows a consumer to keep track of costs and to save money on meals. According to an embodiment, the meal restriction comprises a list of available flavor types such that the determined set of combinations of units only includes the available flavor types.

According to an embodiment, the meal restriction comprises a maximum number of flavor types in the meal such that the determined set of combinations of units does not include combinations of units with more than the maximum number of flavor types.

An advantage may be that the complexity of the meal may be customized. With more flavor types the meals may be more varied. However, it may also require buying and storing more packages. There may be a trade off between having a varied diet and a diet which is practical. The user may adjust this trade-off by setting a meal restriction which limits the maximum number of flavor types.

According to an embodiment, determining a set of combinations of units comprises:

accessing a database with unit combinations, wherein each entry in the database comprises a pre-calculated unit combination and a nutritional composition of the pre-calculated unit combination, wherein the determined set of combinations of units is selected from a subset of the pre-calculated unit combinations which has a nutritional composition that meets the nutritional recommendation.

An advantage may be that a set of combinations of units may be determined quickly. Finding a subset of the pre-calculated unit combinations which has a nutritional composition that meets the nutritional recommendation may be faster than performing the calculations from scratch. Another advantage may be that computational resources may be used effectively. Instead of performing the same calculation several times the calculation may be done once and the result may be saved. Another advantage may be that a device with limited processing power may perform the method.

According to an embodiment, each entry in the database relating to a pre-calculated unit combination further comprises a list of the flavor types in the pre-calculated unit combination of the entry. An advantage may be that the database may be searched quickly. Programming languages may have efficient methods for searching and comparing lists as well as retrieving elements from lists. It should be understood that the term‘list’ should be construed to include both lists in functional programming languages and arrays in object- oriented programming languages.

accessing a database with unit nutritional data, wherein each entry in the database comprises a record of a flavor type and a single unit nutritional composition, wherein the single unit nutritional composition is a nutritional composition of one unit of the flavor type in that entry;

selecting a potential combination of units comprising a number of flavor types and for each flavor type a number of units;

calculate the combined nutritional composition of the potential combination of units based on the number of units of each flavor type and the single unit nutritional composition of that flavor type given by the database; and,

including the potential combination of units in the determined set of combinations of units if the combined nutritional composition meet the nutritional recommendation.

An advantage of the embodiment may be that it saves storage space.

A database with unit nutritional data may be smaller than e.g. a database with unit combinations. The combinations of units may be calculated as needed using only a small database with unit nutritional data for the individual flavor types.

According to an embodiment, the method further comprises:

receiving a selected combination of units, the selected combinations of units being a combination of units selected from the set of combinations of units to be served to the diner; and,

storing, in a computer memory, the selected combination of units.

An advantage of the embodiment may be that it makes it possible to track previous meals. Another advantage may be that the embodiment makes it possible to adjust future meals according to the tracked previous meals. Thereby, future meals may be customized according to previous choices. Future meals may be customized by avoiding the same combination of units as has been recently chosen or by avoiding similar combinations of units. Future meals may also be customized by extracting a preference the diner might have based on past selections. A diner who seems to like chicken may e.g. be presented with a set of combinations of units wherein four of the combinations of units comprise chicken, two of the combinations of units comprise pork and two of the combinations of units comprise fish.

Another advantage of the embodiment may be that it makes it possible to generate statistics of past meals. This may help the diner to make informed choices for future meals. The diner may thereby be helped to improve the diet. For example, you might estimate that you eat a reasonable amount of fish while in reality you only have it occasionally. Statistics may help you remedy this. Statistics of past meals may also help a doctor to improve a diagnosis. Statistics may also help to optimize a diet over a period of time. Even though every individual meal in a diet follows a nutritional

recommendation the diet may still be skewed over time. For example, if every meal only contains the minimum recommended intake of a certain nutritional component then improvements on the diet may be made based on statistics. Another advantage may be that the embodiment makes it possible to account for nutritional recommendations which are based on longer time periods than a single meal, e.g. on a daily, weekly or monthly basis. A nutritional recommendation may e.g. be that a certain nutritional component should be present in a meal e.g. once a week.

Another advantage of the embodiment may be that it makes it possible to track which types of proteins the diner has eaten, e.g. proteins from meat, proteins from legumes, protein from fish etc. Such information may make it possible to ensure that the diet over time has a specific ratio between the various protein types or that a specific amount of a certain protein type is eaten within a certain time. The ratio may be such that it has a specific nutritional benefit for the diner. The ratio may also be such that it has a specific environmental benefit, e.g. that the diet has a certain animal protein versus plant protein ratio.

Another advantage may be that the embodiment makes it possible to rate past meals. The selected and stored combination of units may be rated by the diner or the person serving the diner, e.g. when the diner is a child.

This may make it easier to remember how well received past choices were. The information may also be shared with other users of the method. The other users may then base their choices on what combinations seem to be popular. The information may also be shared with the producer of the food units. Information regarding the selections the consumers make may help the producer modify the range of flavor types. This may reduce waste. For example, when the producer sees that a certain flavor type is bought and tried by the consumers but then rarely eaten (and presumably discarded) that flavor type may be discontinued. It may also help the producer to make new flavor types to meet a demand. For example, if two flavor types often are used together, e.g. fish and tomato sauce, a new flavor type which combine the two original flavor types, e.g. fish in tomato sauce, may be introduced in the range. A consumer rating on the selected and stored combination of units may help the producer further.

According to an embodiment, the method further comprises:

updating a list of remaining units based on the selected combination of units;

wherein the list of remaining units is a list of the number of units of each flavor type which is available for future meals and wherein updating the list of remaining units comprises reducing the number of units of each flavor type in the list of remaining units by an amount corresponding to the number of units of the corresponding flavor type in the selected combination of units.

It should be understood that the list of remaining units may relate to e.g. the number of units of each flavor type which is stored in the home, e.g. in the home freezer. An advantage may be that the method may be adapted to only present a combination of units which may be found at home. This may save time for the consumer who may not need to look for something that is not there. If the food units are stored in the freezer of refrigerator it may also save energy as the freezer/refrigerator may not need to be opened

unnecessarily. Another advantage may be that the consumer may be provided with reminders when a certain flavor type is running low. The consumer may also use the updated list of remaining units when shopping. For example, consumers often decide what to eat later when they are in the grocery store. It may then be useful to know what you have available at home. Thus you may save time by not having to return to the store to get a flavor type that you mistakenly thought you already had. It may also reduce waste as you may not need to buy an extra package just in case, the extra package later being discarded as it passes the best before date.

The embodiment may also facilitate that the list of remaining units is updated when a meal is chosen. By updating the list as part of the selection process rather than as a separate action one may reduce the risk of forgetting to update the list. This may result in a more accurate list of remaining units.

According to an example related to the first aspect there is provided a computer-implemented method for calculating a recommendation for composing a meal from a plurality of food units, wherein the plurality of food units comprises a plurality of flavor types, wherein each food unit of a flavor type is a discrete unit of food with a flavor defined by the flavor type, wherein all units of a flavor type have similar weight, wherein the standard deviation of the food unit weight is 10% or less of the mean of the food unit weight, and similar nutritional composition, wherein the standard deviation of the food unit nutritional composition is 10% or less of the mean of the food unit nutritional composition, the method comprising, by a processing unit:

receiving diner characteristics, the diner characteristics comprising a weight and an age relating to a diner, wherein the diner is an intended consumer of the meal;

retrieving a nutritional recommendation based on the diner

characteristics and the meal type data, wherein the nutritional

recommendation comprises a recommended intake of calories, a

determining a set of combinations of units which meet the nutritional recommendation, each combination of units in the set comprising at least a first number of units of a first flavor type and a second number of units of a second flavor type, the first and the second flavor types being different, the first and second number of units being integer numbers, and the total number of units being below a pre-set value, wherein a nutritional composition of the combination of units meet the nutritional recommendation; and,

According to a second aspect of the invention, there is provided a computer program product comprising a computer-readable medium storing computer-readable instructions which, when executed on a processing unit, will cause the processing unit to perform the method according to any one of the preceding claims.

Effects and features of this second aspect are largely analogous to those described above in connection with the first aspect. Embodiments mentioned in relation to the first aspect are largely compatible with the second aspect. Such a computer program product may thus provide a possibility to install and execute the program in order to obtain the above-discussed advantages of the method.

According to a third aspect of the invention, there is provided a kit of parts comprising:

a plurality of food units, wherein the plurality of food units comprises a plurality of flavor types, wherein each food unit of a flavor type is a discrete unit of food with a flavor defined by the flavor type, wherein all units of a flavor type have similar weight and similar nutritional composition;

wherein the plurality of food units is configured such that a

combination of food units from at least two flavor types meet the nutritional recommendation; and

a computer program product according to the second aspect of the invention for causing the processing unit to present at least one combination of units from the plurality of food units as a recommendation for composing a meal.

Effects and features of this third aspect are largely analogous to those described above in connection with the first and second aspect. Embodiments mentioned in relation to the first and second aspect are largely compatible with the third aspect.

An advantage of the third aspect may be that by providing the plurality of food units and the computer program product as a kit of parts the food units may be configured to match the nutritional recommendations used in the computer program product. For example, the food units may be configured such that the number of units needed for composing a meal is within an interval which is easily countable for the person preparing the meal while at the same time giving a fine enough resolution in the nutritional composition that can be prepared. The food unit may also be configured such that a combination of units meet nutritional recommendations for a different nutritional components simultaneously. For example, situations wherein a certain combination of units meet the nutritional recommendations for all relevant nutritional components but one may be avoided. Instead of forcing the consumer to add an extra unit of a certain flavor type to the meal just to live up also to the nutritional recommendations for the last nutritional component, all the units of that flavor type may be configured such that they are enriched in that particular nutritional component. It should be understood that the distribution channels for the plurality of food units and the computer program product may be the same or different. For example, the computer program product may come with a package of food units. The computer program product may also be distributed by other means, e.g. downloaded from a website or an app store.

In an embodiment of the third aspect the plurality of food units is further configured such that a combination of units in the set of combinations of units comprises 30 units or less.

In an embodiment of the third aspect the plurality of food units is further configured such that a combination of units in the set of combinations of units comprises between 3 and 20 units.

An advantage of configuring the food units such that a combination of units in the set of combinations of units comprises a number of units in these spans may be that they are easily countable for the person preparing the meal while at the same time giving a fine enough resolution in the nutritional composition that can be prepared.

According to an example related to the third aspect there is provided a kit of parts comprising:

a plurality of food units, wherein the plurality of food units comprises a plurality of flavor types, wherein each food unit of a flavor type is a discrete unit of food with a flavor defined by the flavor type, wherein all units of a flavor type have similar weight, wherein the standard deviation of the food unit weight is 10% or less of the mean of the food unit weight, and similar nutritional composition, wherein the standard deviation of the food unit nutritional composition is 10% or less of the mean of the food unit nutritional composition;

wherein the plurality of food units is configured such that a combination of food units from at least two flavor types meet the nutritional

recommendation; and

a computer program product according to claim 14 for causing the processing unit to present at least one combination of units from the plurality of food units as a recommendation for composing a meal. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The above, as well as additional objects, features and advantages of the present inventive concept, will be better understood through the following illustrative and non-limiting detailed description, with reference to the appended drawings. In the drawings like reference numerals will be used for like elements unless stated otherwise.

Fig. 1 is a perspective view of food units.

Fig. 2 is a perspective view of computing device implementing the method.

Fig. 3 is a perspective view of computing device implementing the method.

Fig. 4 is a perspective view of computing device implementing the method.

Fig. 5 is a flowchart of one embodiment of the method.

Fig. 6 is a perspective view of computing device implementing the method.

Fig. 7 is a perspective view of computing device implementing the method.

Fig. 8 is a perspective view of computing device implementing the method.

Fig. 9 is a flowchart of one embodiment of the method.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

In cooperation with attached drawings, the technical contents and detailed description of the present invention are described hereinafter according to preferable embodiments, being not used to limit the claimed scope. This invention may be embodied in many different forms and should not be construed as limited to the embodiments set forth herein; rather, these embodiments are provided for thoroughness and completeness, and fully convey the scope of the invention to the skilled person.

Fig. 1 illustrates a plurality of food units 1 , wherein the plurality of food units 1 comprises a plurality of flavor types 2. The flavor types 2 displayed are chicken, Bolognese sauce, potato, pasta, and carrot. In this embodiment the food units 1 are marked with an icon illustrating the flavor type 2 of the unit 1. However, it should be understood that such a marking may not be necessary. In this embodiment the flavor types 2 are divided into categories. Round food units 1 correspond to protein rich flavor types 2, rectangular food units 1 correspond to carbohydrate rich flavor types 2, and oval food units 1 correspond to vitamin and mineral rich flavor types 2. Dividing the flavor types 2 into categories may make it easier for the user of a method 100 (as described below) to compose a meal according to the selected combination of units. Dividing the flavor types 2 into categories may also simplify the process of calculating combination of units that meet the nutritional recommendation. However, it should be understood that the flavor types 2 may not need to be divided into categories. It should also be understood that the flavor types 2 may be divided into categories for computational reasons although this is not visually apparent to the person preparing the meal.

Fig. 2 illustrates the method 100 being implemented in a computing device 50. In this case the computing device 50 is a smartphone 52. Once the method 100 has been performed at least one combination of units 1 of the determined set of combinations of units 1 is presented on the screen of the smartphone. In Fig. 2 two combinations of units 1 are presented. However, it should be understood that a single combination of units 1 may also be presented. The rest of the combinations of units 1 may be available for displaying if the user discards the first presented combination of units 1. It should also be understood that the entire set of combinations of units 1 may be displayed immediately, or part of the set. In this embodiment the screen of the computing device 50 displays an indicator 40 showing a set of

combinations of units 1. That indicator 40 may in turn comprise one or more indicators 42 of combinations of units 1. An indicator 42 of a combination of units 1 may comprise a number of indicators 44 showing a number of units 1. Each indicator 44 showing a number of units 1 may be linked to an indicator 46 showing a flavor type 2.

The user may then compose the meal according to one of the indicators 42 of combinations of units 1 , e.g. by placing food units 1 of the different flavor types 2 according to the indicated numbers and flavor types 2 on a plate. The user may or may not proceed by cooking the food units in a microwave oven.

The method 100 may be implemented in various computing devices 50. Fig. 3 shows an embodiment wherein the method 100 is performed by a smartphone 52. In this embodiment the smartphone 52 comprises a

processing unit in the form of a central processing unit 56 which, when executing computer-readable instructions, performs the method 100.

In this embodiment the smartphone 52 furthermore comprises a computer memory 58 which stores information which may be needed to implement the method 100. The stored information may be a database mapping diner characteristics to nutritional recommendations, such

information may be retrieved from the database when needed. The stored information may also be a database mapping nutritional recommendations to pre-calculated unit combinations, such information may be retrieved from the database when needed to determine a set of combinations of units which meet the nutritional recommendation. The stored information may also be a database with unit nutritional data which maps a flavor type 2 to the nutritional composition of a single unit 1 of that flavor type 2 for a plurality of flavor types

2, such information may be retrieved when needed to calculate the combined nutritional composition of a combination of units 1. The stored information may also be: lists of diners, diner characteristics for one or more diners, meal restrictions for one or more diners, lists of allergies for one or more diners, lists of previous meals eaten for one or more diners, a list of available flavor types 2, a list of remaining units 1.

Fig. 4 shows an embodiment wherein the method 100 is performed on a server 54 which is wirelessly connected to a smartphone 52. In this embodiment the server comprises a central processing unit 56 and a computer memory 58 that perform the tasks described in connection with Fig.

3. The steps of the method 100 may be performed by different devices. For example, determining a set of combinations of units which meet the nutritional recommendation may be performed by a server 54 while presenting a combination of units or a set of combinations of units to a person may be done by a smarthphone 52. The method 100 may also be performed by utilizing a central processing unit 56 on one device and a computer memory 58 on another device, by utilizing two central processing units 56 on different devices, or by utilizing two computer memories 58 on different devices.

In the following a method 100 according to an embodiment of the invention is described. A flowchart of the embodiment is illustrated in Fig. 5. It should be understood that Fig. 5 does not indicate that the steps of the method 100 need to be performed in a particular order. As a person of ordinary skills in the art understands the steps of the method 100 may be performed in various ways. Fig. 6-8 illustrates embodiments wherein input data is provided for the method 100 to receive.

According to the embodiment of Fig. 5 diner characteristics are received 102. The diner characteristics may be received 102 from a user interface which may be e.g. a screen on a computing device 50 or the screen of a device that is communicating with a computing device 50. In Fig. 6 a user enters diner characteristics, in the form of a weight and an age relating to a diner, on the touch screen of a tablet computer. In Fig. 6 a diner

characteristics input interface 10, with a weight input control 12 and an age input control 14, is used to enter the weight and age of the diner. Flowever, the diner characteristics may also be stored in a computer memory 58 or received in other ways. For example, an age may be entered once and stored in a computer memory 58, the age may then be updated regularly in accordance with a time keeping device. The weight may be set at interval times. The user may be reminded to update the weight when a weight is deemed outdated. Between updates the last entered weight may be used or an extrapolated value may be used. The resolution of the received weight and age may be arbitrarily fine or coarse.

According to the embodiment of Fig. 5 meal type data is received 104. The meal type data may be received 104 from a user interface which may be e.g. a screen on a computing device 50 or the screen of a device that is communicating with a computing device 50. In Fig. 7 a user enters meal type data on the touch screen of a tablet computer. In Fig. 7 a meal type data input interface 20 is used to enter the meal type in the form of selecting a breakfast, lunch, or dinner meal type. Flowever, the meal type data may also be received in other ways. For example, the meal type data may be set in accordance with a time keeping device. For example, in the morning the meal type data may be set to breakfast automatically. The user may be notified of the automatically set meal type data and thereby be given the possibility of changing it. It should be understood that the meal type data may be defined in other ways than breakfast, lunch, dinner. For example, it may be defined as different times of the day or different meal sizes wherein a certain meal size generally is eaten on a certain occasion.

According to the embodiment of Fig. 5 a meal restriction is received 106. This step may be optional. In some embodiments step 106 may be excluded altogether. In other embodiments step 106 may be included if the user so wishes. In other embodiments step 106 may be mandatory. The meal restriction may be received 106 from a user interface which may be e.g. a screen on a computing device 50 or the screen of a device that is communicating with a computing device 50. In Fig. 8 a user enters a meal restriction on the touch screen of a tablet computer. In Fig. 8 a meal restriction input interface 30 is used to enter the meal restriction. The meal restriction may be a flavor type 2 the meal should not contain. This may be selected by selecting flavor types 2 individually or in groups. For example, an option‘vegetarian’ or‘kosher’ may select entire groups of flavor types 2 the meal should not contain. The meal restriction may be based on a list of allergies of the diner. The meal restriction may be based on a list of previous meals eaten by of the diner. The meal restriction may comprise at least one flavor type 2 the meal should contain. The meal restriction may comprise a list of available flavor types 2. The list of available flavor types 2 may e.g. be related to what flavor types 2 the user has in the home freezer. The list may be updated when the user selects a combination of units 1 for a meal. The user may also update the list when a new package of food units 1 has been bought. The meal restriction may comprise a maximum number of flavor types 2 in the meal. It should be understood that the meal restriction may be entered via a user interface or received from a computer memory.

According to the embodiment of Fig. 5 a nutritional recommendation is retrieved 108. The nutritional recommendation may be retrieved from a database wherein various diner characteristics and meal types are mapped to various nutritional recommendations. For example, the nutritional

recommendation from e.g. a health institute may be that a 10 month old baby, weighing 10.2 kg, should have a daily intake of 867 kilocalories and that the calorie intake should be distributed between fat, carbohydrates and protein according to certain calorie percentages, e.g. 30-45% of the calorie intake should come from fat, 45-60% should come from carbohydrates, and 7-15% should come from protein. The nutritional recommendation from the health institute may then be distributed over a number of meals during the day. For example, breakfast 21.4 %, lunch 27.0 %, first snack 15.8 %, dinner 23.4 %, and second snack 12.3 % of the daily calorie intake with the calories of each meal being distributed between fat, carbohydrates and protein according to the same calorie percentages as the daily intake. The nutritional

recommendation stored in the database may then be that a dinner for a 10 month old baby, weighing 10.2 kg should comprise 203 kilocalories, wherein 30-45% of the energy intake should come from fat, 45-60% should come from carbohydrates, and 7-15% should come from protein. The database can of course comprise nutritional recommendations also for vitamins, minerals, trace elements, saturated fat, non-saturated fat, essential fatty acids, probiotics, fibers, sugar, cholesterol, or other nutritional components. It should be understood that other types of nutritional recommendations for daily intake may be used. For example, the nutritional recommendations may be set according to the recommendations that are relevant in the country wherein the method 100 will be used. It should also be understood that the daily intake may be distributed over the daily meals in various ways, either defined by e.g. a health institute or by the provider of the method 100. It should also be understood that the calorie intake in the nutritional recommendation may be a span or a minimum value and not necessarily a fixed value. It should be understood that the nutritional recommendation may also be expressed as one or more equations. For example, a daily intake of calories may be derived from the Schofield equation based on the age, weight and gender of the diner. The daily intake of calories may then be divided into a calorie intake per meal according to a predefined ratio between the meals. A nutritional recommendation may also be retrieved from a combination of a database look-up and a calculation. The nutritional recommendation may adhere to government rules and regulations. For example, if there are government rules and regulations for ready-made meals the nutritional recommendation may ensure that a meal composed from a combination of units also adheres to these regulations.

According to the embodiment of Fig. 5 a set of combinations of units 1 is determined 1 10. In one embodiment pre-calculated unit 1 combinations are stored in a database together with the nutritional compositions of the pre calculated unit combinations. A set of combinations of units 1 may then be determined by a search in the database for combinations which meet the nutritional recommendation. In one example a search in the database for a dinner for a 10 month old baby weighing 10.2 kg results in a combination of: two chicken units 1 , three parsnip units 1 , four mashed turnip units 1 , three green pea units 1 and two apple units 1 , wherein the combination of units comprises 203 kilocalories, 8,6 g fat, 23,5 g carbohydrates, and 6,2 g protein. Such a combination may provide 37 % of the calories from fat, 46 % of the calories from carbohydrates, and 12 % of the calories from protein.

It should be understood that instead of mapping diner characteristics and meal type data to a nutritional recommendation in a first database and then mapping the nutritional recommendation to a set of combinations of units 1 in a second database, the diner characteristics and meal type data may of course be mapped directly to a set of combinations of units 1 in one single database. In such an embodiment a nutritional recommendation is retrieved simultaneously with a set of combinations of units 1 being determined.

In another embodiment, a database with unit nutritional data for the individual flavor types 2 is provided. A combinations of units 1 may then be determined by combining various numbers of units 1 of the different flavor types 2 until a combination meets the nutritional recommendation, that combinations of units 1 may then be added to the set of combinations of units 1. The units 1 of the different flavor types 2 may be combined in a trial and error fashion. This may be done completely randomly or using a fitting algorithm. The process may also be aided by the use flavor types 2 divided into categories. For example, it may be computational advantageous to get the protein content of the meal right by mainly varying the number of units 1 in the category of protein rich flavor types 2.

According to the embodiment of Fig. 5 at least one combination of units 1 of the determined set of combinations of units 1 is presented 112 as the recommendation for composing a meal. In one embodiment the entire determined set of combinations of units 1 is presented. In one embodiment the determined set of combinations of units 1 is presented in an order according to a rating. In one embodiment only one combination of units 1 out of the determined set of combinations of units 1 is presented.

Fig. 9 illustrates an embodiment wherein the method 100 in addition to presenting at least one combination of units 1 comprises one or two additional optional steps.

In one embodiment a selected combination of units 1 is received 1 14. The user may select a combination of units 1 of the presented combinations of units 1 , thereby indicating that this combination of units 1 will be served to a diner. The selected combination of units 1 is then stored in a computer memory 58. In such an embodiment the flavor types 2 and the number of units 1 of each flavor type 2 in the selected combination of units 1 is stored.

In another embodiment, a list of remaining units 1 based on the selected combination of units 1 is updated 1 16. The list of remaining units 1 may represent the number of units of the different flavor types 2 available in the home freezer. The list may be updated by subtracting the number of units 1 of each flavor type 2 in the selected combination of units 1 from the list. The list of remaining units 1 may then e.g. be used as input for a meal restriction in the form of a list of available flavor types 2.

A computer program product for causing the method 100 to be performed may be associated with units 1 from a particular vendor. Thus, the computer program product may be based on knowledge of the products sold by the vendor, such that nutritional composition of individual units 1 may be well-known to the computer program product.

Further, this allows the combination of units 1 to be computed based on thorough knowledge of the units 1 that will form part of the combinations. Hence, the database of unit combinations may be fitted to the particular products sold by the vendor, such that a consumer may be assured that the recommendations for composing a meal applies to the products that are available to the consumer. Likewise, if the unit combinations are calculated based on accessing a database of nutritional data, the database of nutritional data may be fitted to the particular products sold by the vendor.

Hence, the computer program product may facilitate easy composition of suitable meals to a consumer based on food being sold in units 1 , which need to be combined for meeting nutritional recommendations.

In the above the inventive concept has mainly been described with reference to a limited number of examples. However, as is readily

appreciated by a person skilled in the art, other examples than the ones disclosed above are equally possible within the scope of the inventive concept, as defined by the appended claims.

Claims

1. A computer-implemented method for calculating a

recommendation for composing a meal from a plurality of food units, wherein the plurality of food units comprises a plurality of flavor types, wherein each food unit of a flavor type is a discrete unit of food with a flavor defined by the flavor type, wherein all units of a flavor type have similar weight and similar nutritional composition, the method comprising, by a processing unit:

retrieving a nutritional recommendation based on the diner

characteristics and the meal type data, wherein the nutritional

recommendation comprises a recommended intake of calories, a recommended intake of protein, a recommended intake of fat, and a recommended intake of carbohydrates for a meal of the meal type, which is consumed by a diner with the diner characteristics;

2. The method according to claim 1 , the method further

comprising:

3. The method according to claim 2, wherein the meal restriction comprises at least one flavor type the meal should not contain.

4. The method according to claim 3, wherein the at least one flavor type the meal should not contain is based on a list of allergies of the diner, the list of allergies being retrieved from a computer memory.

5. The method according to claims 2-4, wherein the at least one flavor type the meal should not contain is based on a list of previous meals eaten by of the diner, the list of previous meals being retrieved from a computer memory.

6. The method according to any one of claims 2-5, wherein the meal restriction comprises at least one flavor type the meal should contain.

7. The method according to any one of claims 2-6, wherein the meal restriction comprises a list of available flavor types such that the determined set of combinations of units only includes the available flavor types.

8. The method according to any one of claims 2-7, wherein the meal restriction comprises a maximum number of flavor types in the meal such that the determined set of combinations of units does not include combinations of units with more than the maximum number of flavor types.

9. The method according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein determining a set of combinations of units comprises:

accessing a database with unit combinations, wherein each entry in the database comprises a pre-calculated unit combination and a nutritional composition of the pre-calculated unit combination, wherein the

determined set of combinations of units is selected from a subset of the pre-calculated unit combinations which has a nutritional composition that meets the nutritional recommendation.

10. The method according to claim 9, wherein each entry in the database relating to a pre-calculated unit combination further comprises a list of the flavor types in the pre-calculated unit combination of the entry.

1 1. The method according to any one of claims 1 -8, wherein determining a set of combinations of units comprises:

12. The method according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein the method further comprises:

storing, in a computer memory, the selected combination of units.

13. The method according to claim 12, wherein the method further comprises:

updating a list of remaining units based on the selected combination of units;

14. A computer program product comprising a computer-readable medium storing computer-readable instructions which, when executed on a processing unit, will cause the processing unit to perform the method according to any one of the preceding claims.

15. A kit of parts comprising:

a plurality of food units, wherein the plurality of food units comprises a plurality of flavor types, wherein each food unit of a flavor type is a discrete unit of food with a flavor defined by the flavor type, wherein all units of a flavor type have similar weight and similar nutritional

composition;

recommendation; and

a computer program product according to claim 14 for causing the processing unit to present at least one combination of units from the plurality of food units as a recommendation for composing a meal.