Scottish people have failed to improve their diets over the last 10 years, despite a decade of government initiatives aimed at increasing consumption of fruit and vegetables, a new report will reveal.
According to The Scotsman, while initiatives like 5 A DAY have boosted fruit and vegetable consumption across the rest of the UK, Scotland’s fresh produce intake is still lagging behind.
TNS figures show that on the back of such drives, British consumption has this year risen to 3.3 portions a day from 2.5 in 2005.
However, a report from the Food Standards Agency (FSA), published this year, shows little improvement in Scottish diets. Scottish Office targets of five portions daily, set ten years ago have not been met, the Scotsman said. Instead, Scots now eat more sugar, and their consumption levels of saturated fat and fruit and vegetables have remained static.
Only a fifth of people surveyed in 2003 said they consumed five portions of fruit and vegetables daily.
However, the picture looks better for the UK overall. Sales of fresh produce in the UK is up 5.4 per cent on last year, a TNS study has found, with the soft fruit experiencing the biggest sales growth - up 18 per cent. Of this, sales of blackberries have risen 114 per cent, blueberries 75 per cent, and blackcurrants 62 per cent.
Apples have seen a dip in popularity as consumers hanker after more exotic fruits, and sales of prepared fruit and vegetables have risen with a demand for convenience.
