I often wonder how long it will be before a new dimension is added to the fresh produce industry to give our products a real boost. It may still be a long time coming, but one news item that caught my eye this week was that the John Innes Centre has bred a purple GM tomato it believes may help prevent several major diseases.

We will certainly have entered a Brave New World when a visit to the doctor provides a literal prescription for specific fruits or vegetables, rather than the existing time-worn advice on the natural benefits of a balanced diet.

Superfruits, because of antioxidant levels or other properties, are already firmly on the agenda. Only time will tell whether this trend, or similarly 5 A DAY, will achieve the same levels of immortality enjoyed by the old chestnut, ‘an apple a day’…

At least the consumer is now getting a mass of information on the benefits of fruit and veg, generated by PR machines as well as science, even if there is a suspicion that sometimes Joe Public finds the sheer weight of the claims somewhat confusing. However, as we have seen again this week, with only 12 per cent of Brits getting their 5 A DAY, consumption in many parts of the country - and the country as a whole - remains far below what is recommended.

History shows that such campaigns usually run in cycles. 5 A DAY was launched from the US by voluntary funding under the umbrella of the Fresh Fruit and Vegetable Information Bureau. The initial burst of enthusiasm some 20 years ago was followed by a period when the message stuttered along because of lack of cash, before the government took up the challenge.

Awareness has certainly strengthened. The message appears not just on promotional material and produce packs in the fresh produce sections of the major retailers but is also endorsed, where appropriate, by food manufacturers.

The concept has been given additional impetus by the Fresh Produce Consortium’s (FPC) Eat in Colour campaign. This has another year to run, as by next September FPC will have to encourage its supporters to commit funds to continue.

However well respected both campaigns may be, maintaining the momentum they have built up to date may not be an easy task, because of a continued shortage of cash in the industry and tightening margins. Retailers too are beginning to feel the pinch and becoming ever more alert to encouraging their suppliers to contribute towards their own promotional plans.

If supplier money is being directed to the supermarkets, it must surely diminish their ability to invest in generic promotion. And on the other side of the coin, with the government pouring what to most people seems like Monopoly money into the economy, it is not implausible that it could decide its drop-in-the-ocean financial support for 5 A DAY could be better spent elsewhere.

But there is still hope around the corner. Fresh produce is not only a basic part of the diet but available in an almost endless choice of tastes, textures and flavours. It is also excellent value for money in comparison with many other products. In the coming months, it may be given greater public prominence when the pennies are tight. That could well prove to be a stronger message than anything that has gone before.

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