State of the Plate
The Produce for Better Health Foundation’s 2010 study of America’s consumption of fruits and vegetables.
While most Americans realize that eating fruits and vegetables is important to a healthy diet, under-consumption continues to be a problem. Efforts have been underway nationally for nearly 20 years to promote fruits and vegetables through supermarkets, on packaging, and in local communities. Efforts have strengthened over the last five years to assure that fruits and vegetables are available where people eat. A combination of both fruit and vegetable availability and messaging will be critical to increase America’s consumption of fruits and vegetables.
After extensive consumer research, Produce for Better Health Foundation (PBH), Centers for Disease Control & Prevention (CDC), and other national partners launched a new call to action, Fruits & Veggies—More Matters, in March 2007. The Fruits & Veggies—More Matters campaign replaced the 5 A Day program that had existed nationally since 1991 as the rallying cry to deliver the benefits of fruits and vegetables to consumers in a way that was designed to change and sustain their behavior over the long term. Fruits & Veggies—More Matters was developed with moms, gatekeepers to their family’s meals, as the primary target audience.
In early 2010, PBH commissioned consumer research through The NPD Group to examine trends in fruit and vegetable consumption among Americans. Trends were examined by age, gender, and life cycle. The percent of individual groups that were achieving their recommended number of cups of fruits and vegetables daily were identified. In addition, trends in meal occasion, types of fruits and vegetables, and in-home vs. away-from-home eating habits were examined.
Here are some of the findings:
• The average person consumes 1.8 cups of fruits and vegetables per day or about 660 cups annually. Vegetables account for 60% of this average, while fruit represents 40%.
• Several groups have increased their fruit consumption by at least 5% since 2004. These include children ages 2-12, males 18-34, and females 18-54.
• Older adults are eating fewer fruits and vegetables compared to just 5 years ago. Men and women aged 65 and over have decreased their intake nearly 10% vs. 2004 levels.
• Only 6% of individuals achieve their recommended target for vegetables; 8% achieve their recommended target for fruit in an average day.
• The most successful approaches reported by moms for increasing their family’s fruit and vegetable consumption include setting out a fruit bowl; having vegetables cut up and ready to eat in the refrigerator; involving children in selecting, growing, or preparing fruits and vegetables; and hiding them in other foods.
Visit the Produce for Better Health website for more information and downloadable PDFs.