US fruit vegetable market

A veg market: not a happy hunting ground for 75 per cent of children

Almost three-quarters of children in the UK hate eating vegetables, a new survey has perhaps not unsurprisingly found.

But while a third of those questioned said that they simply don't enjoy the taste of vegetables, a number reported that it's the texture or smell of vegetables that they dislike, while others claimed that they are put off by the colour or shape of particular vegetables.

Carrots are the vegetable children most enjoy eating, though, the survey, commissioned by pasta sauce brand Ragu, found.

While 32 per cent of parents surveyed admitted that they chop up veg into smaller pieces in order to get their kids to eat it, 20 per cent of those children questioned said they frequently hide veg under other food on their plate to avoid eating it, and a further 17 per claim that they pass off their unwanted produce to the family pet.

Carrots are least likely to get this treatment - 42 per cent of children happily enjoy the root vegetable, the survey found.

Other popular choices include peas, happily eaten by 34 per cent of those surveyed, cucumber (23 per cent), corn (21 per cent) and broccoli (19 per cent).

Brussel sprouts, meanwhile, are the vegetables that parents have the most difficulty getting their kids to eat, and other vegetables that children dislike include cabbage, spinach, swede and turnips.

The survey coincides with Ragu releasing its new Hidden Vegetables pasta sauce.