Food scientists have invented a chocolate sandwich spread crammed with vegetables – the ultimate “stealth health” ingredient for school lunchboxes.S’coolBeans is being developed as a low-cost chocolate and hazelnut-flavoured spread made from fermented sugar beans and sweet potato.S'coolBeans would like to introduce you to the team: Carin-Marie, Shannon, Cenette, Megan, Taryn and Nicholas. #scoolbeansPicture: Janitha de Kock via S'cool Beans - FacebookIt is the brainchild of food scientists at Stellenbosch University who are hoping to develop the concept and get it onto the market.Janitha de Kock via S'cool BeansJanitha de Kock via S'cool BeansWhile parents face the challenge of having to pack appealing lunchboxes‚ the chocolate spread could one day become the ideal way to sneak vegetables onto the menu.Cenette Bezuidenhout‚ one of the developers of S'coolBeans‚ said the spread was more than just a way of incorporating vegetables into a tasty sandwich spread for children.“It is high in protein and contains the necessary vitamins and minerals needed to ensure the development and growth of children‚ especially those from low-income environments‚” she said.Bezuidenhout believes the spread could be well suited to use in school feeding schemes.“S'coolBeans not only provides an affordable solution to fighting hunger but it also incorporates three of the current global food trends‚ such as new uses for fruit and vegetables‚ more prominence to protein and good fats‚ as well as carbohydrates‚" she said in a statement released by the university.The team‚ which includes Bezuidenhout‚ Carin-Marie Engelbrecht‚ Nicholas Grobbelaar‚ Taryn Harding‚ Shannon Howell and Megan Kleyn‚ said on the S’coolBeans Facebook page that the name was coined while attempting to make the spread appealing to school children.“So basically when we were creating our product‚ under the theme ‘Stealth Health’‚ we decided to aim our product at school children - as they would benefit most from the spread‚” said the team.“So we came up with a few names such as ‘Choconut’‚ ‘Chocospread’ and ‘Beannut’‚ but none of them sounded right or stuck in our heads. Then we thought of slang that school children uses and one that really stood out was ‘cool beans’.“So one of us pipes up and says‚ ‘Well our product is aimed at “school” kids‚ and it contains ‘beans’‚ so why not ‘SchoolBeans’?“So we did a little tweak with the 'School' and removed the 'h' to make it sound cool and there you have it... S'coolBeans was formed‚” the post read.The team is currently working with Innovus‚ the technology transfer company of Stellenbosch University‚ to develop the concept further in the hope of attracting a manufacturer interested in putting S'coolBeans on the market and making it available to school feeding schemes.It has also been named as a finalist in the International Union of Food Science and Technology’s (IUFoST) Food Science Students Fighting Hunger product development competition.The winners will be announced at the IUFoST 18th World Congress of Food Science and Technology in Dublin‚ Ireland‚ from August 21 to 25.TMG Digital..