Everyone readily accepts that fruit and vegetables are good for you. Apart from being part of the diet since mankind arrived on the planet, they have the advantage of being more than just pleasant to eat, and these days they are available in a wide range of flavours, shapes and colours.

The most pressing question, therefore, is why is the message still struggling to get through?

The industry made great progress in the years when the voluntarily funded Fresh Fruit and Vegetable Information Bureau (FFVIB) both held the reins, and did great service guiding the media. Up to that point most journalists had little concept of seasonality or source, less still of the vital links in the distribution chain, and on top of it all thought everyone from growers to retailers were stitching up the public and making substantial profits.

Mercifully, we moved on from this scenario into an era where the 5 A DAY message - which it is often forgotten was launched by the FFVIB - has become firmly established with the help of government.

An extra bonus, which has hopefully gone some way to sowing the habit-forming seeds in the next generation, was the initiative which provided snack fruit (and some vegetables) for primary schools.

While point of sale and posters, which once appeared on every type of hoarding from bus shelters to underground stations, have disappeared, the message has been taken on by multiples and media. TV channels in particular are awash with cookery programmes.

Seasonal recipes in the press, often instigated by the long-term investment in PR that producers have made to support their own sectional interests, have proved to be powerful marketing tools. Hardly a day goes by without fresh produce ads appearing courtesy of supermarkets.

A glowing example this week is sprouts - not the most popular of brassicas - which have been given a boost in a TV campaign by Morrisons in the run-up to Christmas.

All these messages to buy have also indirectly been supported by a surge of reports from various universities throughout the world stressing the natural benefits produce has in combating both disease and the effects of old age.

With consumers being fed the confidence to buy, it seems reasonable to wonder why national consumption appears to have stalled. For, according to the report presented recently to Defra by the Fruit and Veg Task Force, the magic target of five is still some way off, and has even slipped.

Tastes may have changed to embrace everything from apricots to zucchini, but the core message long carried by ‘An Apple a Day’ is still as valid as ever. Everyone may have to think about new ways to shout louder and longer. âñ

David Shapley is a horticultural journalist and former editor of FPJ. To appear in this column email editorial@fpj.co.uk

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