Percentage of infants 6 through 9 months of age who receive breastmilk and a solid/semi-solid food (based on 24-hour recall). Solid foods are defined as foods of mushy or solid consistency, not fluids. The rate is calculated as follows:

# of infants 6–<10 months breast
feeding and receiving solid/semi-solid foods   x 100
total # of infants 6–<10 months

This equation may be modified to calculate rates for one-month intervals. The month-interval in the numerator should match the month interval in the denominator.

Number of infants 6–<10 months old breastfeeding and receiving solid/semi-solid foods

Total # of infants 6–<10 months

24-hour recall of food consumption of infants 6–<10 months of age

Population-based surveys employing representative samples (e.g., the DHS). Program records may be used to track trends in complementary feeding but not to measure impact. DHS reports present data for this indicator for those countries in which the breastfeeding/infant-feeding module was included.

All complementary feeding data can be disaggregated so that month-specific complementary feeding rates can be calculated. Month-specific TCF is more sensitive to changes in infant feeding behaviors since changes in these intervals identify exact ages of complementary feeding behaviors.

TCF is defined by three criteria:
1. The infant is 6–<10 months old, and
2. The infant was breastfed in the previous 24 hours, and
3. The infant was fed a solid or semi-solid food in the previous 24 hours.

See sample survey with questions needed to calculate the rate.

Complementary feeding is a highly complex issue. It involves factors such as the quantity and quality of food, frequency and timeliness of feeding, food hygiene, and feeding during/after illness. Programs at the country level must take these many factors into consideration in trying to address the problems of infant and young child feeding in the local context.

The standard complementary feeding indicator does not take into account program-specific or context-specific feeding recommendations regarding the frequency, quality, or quantity of foods given during the proceeding 24 hours. If researchers or evaluators opt to collect additional information on complementary feeding (e.g., for the purpose of evaluating a specific program intervention), we recommend retaining the “basic” timely complementary feeding indicator because it offers comparisons with other populations.