A coalition of food businesses, charities and health advocates has called on the government to address what they describe as a "national scandal" of poor access to fruit and vegetables across the UK.
In an open letter, the group – which includes innocent drinks, Feeding Britain, The Felix Project and several other organisations – highlights alarming statistics showing that two-thirds of adults and nine out of ten children aren't consuming their recommended daily intake of fruit and vegetables.
"It is a national scandal that in the UK, two-thirds of adults and nine out of ten children aren't getting their recommended 400g of fruit and vegetables per day," the letter states, citing data from the National Diet and Nutrition Survey.
The coalition points to "fruit and veg deserts" as a key contributor to the problem, with one in ten deprived areas in the UK classified as food deserts that lack access to fresh produce. According to research cited in the letter, over 10.2 million people are living in areas where access to affordable, nutritious food is severely limited.
Transportation challenges compound these issues, with the letter noting that "41 per cent of households [in deprived regions] lack access to a car, making it even more challenging to reach supermarkets that offer fresh produce."
The coalition has welcomed Defra's recent announcement to create a new National Food Strategy in 2025 but stresses the importance of cross-departmental collaboration to ensure success.
To address the crisis, the coalition proposes five key policies:
- Establishing a national Fruit and Veg forum to foster collaboration
- Simplifying funding models for charities and not-for-profits
- Launching a Community Eatwell programme for targeted healthy eating support
- Increasing funding for the Healthy Start scheme in line with inflation
- Promoting education on food and healthy eating in schools
"We hope that you will work with us to deliver these policies, so that we can collectively turn the tide on nutritional deficiency and ensure that access to nutritious fruit and vegetables is a reality for everybody," the letter concludes.
The coalition includes a diverse group of signatories such as Alexandra Rose Charity, Barfoots, Community Shop, Feeding Britain, Felix Project, FEAST With Us, Hackney School of Food, Hubbub, IGD, innocent drinks, Squished, and UKHarvest, along with food advocates Gavin Wren and Joe Woodhouse.
