Europeans consume half of the recommended vegetable intake

Increasing the consumption of fruits and vegetables is a public health matter, and related nutritional recommendations have been issued on a European level. But in spite of the policies adopted and of consumer awareness of the benefits of fruits and vegetables, the reality is clear:
the average adult consumes 220 g of fruits and vegetables per day instead of the minimum 400 g recommended by the World Health Organization (WHO).

Here are some numbers illustrating consumption in various countries

• In Poland, the daily vegetable intake for adults reaches 295 g, and the daily fruit intake is 282 g.
• In England, the average daily consumption of fruits and vegetables for young women is 3.1 servings, or 250 g.
• In Portugal, children eat 112 g of vegetables per day, 55% of which are eaten as soups, compared with just 54 g in Spain and 80 g in France.
• In Romania, 84% of adults consume less than 80 g of fruits and vegetables per day.
• In France, the average daily intake of ready-to-eat fruits and vegetables per person is 26 g, compared with 56 g in Italy and 4 g in Cyprus.

How can we overcome the obstacles to consumption?

For several years, many initiatives have been carried out everywhere in the European Union in order to answer this question and develop efficient strategies to increase fruit and vegetable consumption. In these few pages, the Louis Bonduelle Foundation provides you with a description, though by no means comprehensive, of the current state of fruit and vegetable consumption in Europe and the potential solutions to increase it.

According to The Louis Bonduelle Conference, Paris, June 2010, and to the EGEA Conference, Brussels, May 2010.