The fresh produce health message may be getting through to consumers, with 92 per cent of the population putting fresh fruit or some kind of fresh vegetable in their shopping basket each week, research by Sainsbury’s has revealed.
The study, which spanned 6,432 customers of all supermarkets over a four week period in June, is the largest probe of its kind and was designed to capture a picture of the typical weekly shopping basket around the country.
As well as finding that fruit and vegetables were a priority, the study also found some interesting regional variations in weekly fruit and veg buying habits.
Around 94 per cent of Welsh people bought fruit each week - more than anywhere else in the UK, and north-eastern shoppers were the biggest vegetable buyers, eating five per cent more than the national average.
Lancastrians ate more bananas than anywhere else in the UK, with 81 per cent buying the fruit at every supermarket visit. They also ate the most apples.
Shoppers in Yorkshire were the biggest tomato fans, with 79 per cent adding them to their shopping basket, the study showed.
Beth Flower, Sainsbury’s nutritionist said: “Our food trends research shows that across the UK people have very different food tastes - something that is demonstrated by the differences in what people put in their shopping trolleys each week. Our UK-wide research suggests there is no such thing as an average British shopping basket, and we work hard to tailor our food range to the taste buds of local communities.”
Overall, the study showed the average weekly basket was made up of 52 per cent fresh goods, with milk the most popular item.
Bananas at second place proved the most popular fruit with 68 per cent purchasing them weekly, and potatoes tomatoes and apples won third, fourth and fifth place, with 65, 64 and 63 per cent buying them each week, respectively.
Green vegetables came in at seventh with 60 per cent, and lettuce just made the top ten in ninth position, being bought by 55 per cent of shoppers each week.
