Fruit and vegetable consumption and waste in Australia - VicHealth

Grocery Council (AFGC). Each contributed equal funding and data collection and reporting
were contracted to the CSIRO and the University of South Australia (DHA, 2008b).
This was the first national survey of children’s nutrition since the 1995 survey (and the
first national physical activity survey since 1985). Over 4,440 Australian children from all
states and territories aged 2 to 16 participated. Dietary data collection involved a face-toface
interview with children and parents during which information on the participating
child’s food intake was collected using a sophisticated 24-hour recall technique. Another
similar recall was conducted on the same informants via telephone 1-3 weeks later
(DHA, 2008b).
The survey found that the proportion of children meeting the guidelines for fruit and
vegetable intake declined with age. Over 60% of 4-8 year olds consumed adequate
amounts of fruit and 22% consumed adequate amounts of vegetables. Of 16 year olds,
only 1% met the guidelines for fruit and 5% met the guidelines for vegetables (DHA, 2008a).
National Health Survey
In 2004-2005, the ABS conducted a National Health Survey to obtain benchmarks on a
wide range of health issues. Nearly 26,000 people of all ages from all states and
territories were included. Unlike the National Nutrition Survey and Kids Eat Kids Play,
which asked participants to report their consumption from the previous day, this survey
asked participants to estimate their usual consumption levels, using a small number of
short answer questions. The data revealed that approximately 90% of the population did
not consume the recommended 5 serves of vegetables per day and about 50% did not
consume the recommended two serves of fruit per day (ABS, 2006b).
State-based Consumption Data
Several of the Australian States and Territories have gathered their own consumption
data for fruits and vegetables. In all cases, this data reinforces the national findings – the
Australian population is not meeting the national recommendations for fruit and vegetable
consumption (Hands, Parker, Glasson, Brinkman, & Read, 2004; Victorian Department of
Human Services, 2006).
For example, in Victoria, the 2006 Population Health Survey found that the only 47% of
adults met the recommended daily intake levels for fruit and less than 10% (9.9%) met
the recommendations for vegetables. These proportions were both down from those
recorded earlier in the decade of 56% and 12%, respectively. Additionally, the Survey
found that less than one in ten women (9.9%) and only 5% of males met the guidelines
for both fruit and vegetables (Victorian Department of Human Services, 2006). In
Western Australia, the 2003 Child and Adolescent Physical Activity and Nutrition Survey
(CAPANS) found that on the day of data collection, 45% of children ate no fruit and 30%
ate no vegetables. Analogous to findings from the National Nutrition Survey, many of the
vegetables that were consumed were potatoes prepared with added fat (wedges, chips
or hash browns) and 70% of children ate cereal-based non-core foods, such as cakes,
biscuits and pastries on the day of data collection (Hands et al., 2004).
Furthermore, the evidence collected both at the Commonwealth level and at the state
level clearly indicates that consumption is not consistent across the population. For
adolescents and adults, fruit and vegetable consumption is positively related to income
(Kamphuis et al., 2006). Particularly low consumption has also been noted amongst
young adult males (between 25 and 34 years of age) (Victorian Department of Human
Services, 2006).
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