Around 60% of Kiwi adults say they eat three or more servings of vegetables each day, while 47% of Maori and 55% of non-Maori say they eat at least two servings of fruit.
According to Dr. Louse Mainvil from the Department of Human Nutrition at Otago University, food choices of people are complicated. While most people know that vegetables are good for them, many still prefer not to eat them.
There were many reasons people didn’t eat the recommended amount of fruit and vegetables, particularly in low-income groups, Mainvil said.
Many people said they weren’t eating fruit and vegetables because of the cost, but in some cases, when people were given some they said they didn’t have time to cook them.
People tend to find some vegetables they liked to eat. Among New Zealand adults there was a low prevalence of people who said they didn’t eat vegetables because they didn’t like them.
Sometimes people on limited incomes might compromise and decide to buy something that left their children feeling full.
Instead of buying fruit and vegetables, people in low-income groups tend to buy bread and pasta. If they could afford sausages they might buy those because the fat helped their children feel full, she said.