August 2, 2013
Source: Rabobank
While there is a global consensus on the benefits of eating fruit and vegetables, promoted through myriad health campaigns, recent figures suggest that per capita consumption levels of fruit and vegetables in Western European and the US are declining.
The idea that fruit and veg are essential for a healthy diet is pushed not just by governments around the world but also health bodies and industry associations through campaigns such as ‘5 a day’ in the UK and US, ‘5 am Tag in Germany’ and 2+2 in the Netherlands. There’s more choice available, too, with international trade and innovations in breeding, growing, storing and packaging meaning a growing diversity of products are available year-round.
Not only that, but fruit and veg are being offered up in more convenient formats, including washed and bagged salads, fresh-cut stir-fry mixes and snack vegetables.
Declining consumption levels
And yet despite all this, people in Western Europe, Japan and the US have been eating less of these healthy foods in recent years. In many cases, consumption remains below World Health Organisation guidelines, even though health is one of the major trends in food consumption.
The reasons for this are complex but, like other foodstuffs, falling disposable incomes as a result of the financial crisis have played a role. Research suggests that increases in the price of other products, such as alcohol and dairy, can also lead to people buying less fruit and veg.
Fruit and veg are in competition with processed foods, but it’s not really a fair fight. Processed foods are promoted not just throughout the print, broadcast and internet media, but also in schools, shopping malls, train stations and other public spaces. If you’re looking for a snack on the go, processed foods are often the only option available.
Promotional challenges
Fruit and veg lack the promotional budgets and brand-building efforts of processed products. “For the fresh produce industry, it is extremely difficult to match the sophisticated marketing efforts of the processed food industry as many products are sold unpackaged and unbranded,” says Rabobank analyst Cindy van Rijswick.
The promotional power of the brands can be a trump card even for health-conscious consumers as processed foods in the health and wellness category make claims such as ‘0 percent fat’, ‘diet’ or ‘containing vitamins’. Yet research suggests that many products using the health benefits of fruit as part of their marketing contain little or no fruit at all.
Many people also think processed food is cheaper, even when it is not. “A common misperception among consumers is that unhealthy food is cheaper to eat than healthy food,” says van Rijswick. In the UK, for example, consumers have cut back on fruit and vegetable purchases since the outbreak of the economic crisis, even though prices of fruits and vegetables have not outpaced food prices in general.
Convenience
For some shoppers, convenience is the issue – we all have busy lives, so why put in the time and effort that buying, preparing and cleaning up after fruit and veg consumption can involve when there is a packet that can be opened and eaten immediately or just popped into the microwave?
Producers’ options
According to Rabobank, fruit and veg producers can fight back in three ways. The first strategy focuses on consumers. Governments can be left to focus on the public health aspects of diet, the bank’s food and agribusiness research unit says, leaving producers free to highlight the convenience, taste, enjoyment and versatility of fruits and vegetables.
The industry could even team up with outside organisations such as restaurants, food and drinks groups and media players. These groups are increasingly looking to position themselves as purveyors of healthy products but using fruit and veg to make misleading claims for products – as outlined above – is increasingly risky. Now is the right time for the fruit and veg industry to leverage its own inherent health benefits and the creativity and financial muscle of others in the industry to promote healthy diets.
The second strategy revolves around making products more convenient, reducing wastage – the flip side of fruit and veg’s freshness is that it is perishable – and appealing to a wider range of consumers. Options include offering more frozen or packaged and prepared products. One simple yet successful example is the Belgian chicory with packaging that allows it to be heated directly in the microwave without removing the packaging or undergoing any other preparation.
Finally companies throughout the value chain need to co-operate more closely to ensure a consistently high level of taste and quality, often by creating dedicated supply chains where the brand owner is in control. It can be as important to ensure that inferior products do not reach the shelves as to reduce the time to market. As other food and drinks sectors have seen recently, a good reputation is both extremely important and very easy to lose.
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