Gulyas, B.Z. orcid.org/0000-0002-6206-4902 and Edmondson, J.L. orcid.org/0000-0002-3623-4816 (2024) The contribution of household fruit and vegetable growing to fruit and vegetable self‐sufficiency and consumption. Plants, People, Planet, 6 (1). pp. 162-173. ISSN 2572-2611
Abstract
Societal Impact Statement Household fruit and vegetable (F&V) production in allotments and gardens can provide sustainable access to nutritious food. The present study demonstrates that UK household F&V production supplies more than half of the vegetables and potatoes and 20% of the fruit that growers consume annually. Importantly, study participants ate 6.3 portions of their recommended 5-a-day F&V (70% higher than the UK national average), and their wasted F&V was 95% lower than the national average. This provides key evidence to demonstrate the role household F&V production could play in providing access to fresh F&V, which is key to a healthy, food-secure population.
Summary Improving access to and consumption of fruits and vegetables (F&V) is crucial to a healthy and food-secure population, as current low intakes are linked to high rates of non-communicable diseases, premature death and increased healthcare costs. Household F&V production could improve diet quality and food system resilience, however, quantitative evidence for its potential is limited. We studied year-long F&V production, purchases, donations and waste in UK food-grower households (N = 85) using a food diary approach. Median year-round household self-sufficiency was 51% in vegetables, 20% in fruits and 50% in potatoes. The median daily per capita F&V intake was 507 g, which is the equivalent of 6.3 portions of F&V and 70% higher than the UK national average. On average, own production accounted for half of each household's annual 5-a-day F&V requirements. F&V waste was negligible, equivalent to 0.12 portions per day and 95% lower than the UK average F&V waste. We demonstrate that promoting household F&V production could improve food system resilience, diet-related public health and sustainability.
Metadata
Item Type: | Article |
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Authors/Creators: |
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Copyright, Publisher and Additional Information: | © 2023 The Authors. Plants, People, Planet published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd on behalf of New Phytologist Foundation. This is an open access article under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits use, distribution and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited. |
Keywords: | diet quality; food security; fruits and vegetables; public health; resilience; sustainability; urban horticulture |
Dates: |
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Institution: | The University of Sheffield |
Academic Units: | The University of Sheffield > Faculty of Science (Sheffield) > School of Biosciences (Sheffield) > Department of Animal and Plant Sciences (Sheffield) |
Depositing User: | Symplectic Sheffield |
Date Deposited: | 15 Aug 2023 11:17 |
Last Modified: | 09 Oct 2024 13:41 |
Status: | Published |
Publisher: | Wiley |
Refereed: | Yes |
Identification Number: | 10.1002/ppp3.10413 |
Open Archives Initiative ID (OAI ID): | oai:eprints.whiterose.ac.uk:202415 |