my $type = ref( $e->{mealplans}->{mealplan} );

if ($type eq "ARRAY")
{

$mealplans=$e->{mealtypes}->{mealtype};

    for my $mealtype ( @{$e->{mealtypes}->{mealtype}} ) {
        $rateid = $mealtype->{rateid};
        
        print "$mealtype";
    }
}