How to get us to eat more vegetables?

The National Health and Medical Research Council nutrition guidelines recommend that adult Australians should be eating five to six serves of vegetables each day to ensure a healthy life. A recent survey of 675 people by AusVeg (the representative body for potato and vegetable growers in Australia) shows that the actual number of serves of vegetables being consumed is only 2.5.

Andrew White, AusVeg Manager of Industry Development and Communications, said; “Also of concern was that the consumers that had kids stated their children were only consuming an average of 2.4 serves of vegetables per day, which is in the lower range of the vegetable intake recommended by the National Health and Medical Research Council of 2 to 5 serves.”

Chips with a fast food meal and salad on the burger do not really count as reasonable serves. There is a perception by some in our community that this is the case. A serve is actually 75grams or half a cup of cooked vegetables. So we should be eating at least 2.5 cups of cooked vegetables each day.

So why are we not eating our vegetables, when we all know that doing so is healthy and good for us?

It is the big question that AusVeg and it’s members are trying to answer. The next obvious question that flows from that, is how can the growers and their organisation encourage us to eat what we should be eating? More vegetable consumption is going to improve overall health for al of us as well as improve the profits of the growers. It is the classic example of a win win, but what needs to happen for it to occur?

Mr White said; “Eating a range of different coloured vegetables may be an easy way to access a higher intake of proteins, iron, some essential fatty acids, dietary fibres, micronutrients, folate and complex carbohydrates, and can also be an enjoyable way to cook and eat.”

Is the answer more marketing of vegetables and their health benefits, or are Australians just so over the amount of information thrown at them daily that they are not getting the message?

A new website “Veggycation” was set up in December 2013 to promote vegetable consumption and the health benefits of doing so. However it then needs to be promoted so that people will go and look at it.

There is also a move to place vegetable related health claims on food packaging to encourage more consumption. However the question is still, are people just over the information bombardment they get every day and therefore may not see this valuable and useful promotion.

We have to eat more vegetables, that is a no brainer, but how to get us to do so is probably the biggest issue for the fruit and vegetable industries right now.

Written by Rachelle Williams – the Green Food Safety Coach