New research reveals Australian kids are only consuming five serves of veg a week at dinner time, despite the government’s dietary guidelines recommending five serves of vegetables per day.
A national survey, commissioned by The Good Foundation, found that the majority (71%) of Australian kids aged 3-17 are not getting the recommended daily intake of fruit and vegetables; with less than a third eating veggies every night.
While the root cause of this is complex and varied, Australian parents attribute increasingly busy lifestyles the ease and accessibility of packaged/convenience dinners and takeaway food as strong contributors.
According to the data, 57% believe it is quicker to get fast food than prepare a meal from scratch, while 58% said that if given more time they would like to cook more meals.
Forty-four percent cited that they sometimes feel guilty about not cooking more meals containing fresh vegetables.
In an Australia first, Jamie Oliver’s Learn Your Fruit and Veg program is now available to schools across the country – an initiative delivered by The Good Foundation to put fun back into fresh food and change the eating habits of kids nationwide.
Jamie Oliver’s Learn Your Fruit and Veg is an evidence based hands-on food education program for primary schools and engages children about fresh food by teaching them simple to follow and quick to prepare recipes, using Jamie Oliver’s signature cooking tips and shortcuts.
“At its simplest, Learn Your Fruit and Veg is about celebrating fresh produce and all the delicious things you can make with veg and fruit,” Oliver said.
“Plus, any extra support we can give teachers, parents and families to get kids engaged in cooking from scratch – giving them the skills to feed themselves well – takes us all one step closer to a happier, healthier future.”
Each lesson in the program focuses on a hero fruit or vegetable and students are taught what the fruit or veg is, where it comes from, and how it affects their bodies.
Amy Smith, CEO of The Good Foundation and Jamie’s Ministry of Food Australia said the research revealed that cooking has a positive influence on how many vegetables Australian families eat.
“Kids and teenagers who cook more often, and families who eat together, are more likely to regularly consume fresh veggies,” Smith said.
“Currently a fifth of our teens never cook a meal at home, and less than half do so monthly.”
Smith said that if exposed to fruit and veg regularly from a young age, children are more likely to consume them as adults.
“Early intervention is key,” she said.