International Year of Fruits and Vegetables

5 Apr

Did you know that 2021 is the International Year of Fruits and Vegetables?

Given the importance of fruits and vegetables in maintaining a healthy lifestyle and boosting your mental well-being, this is a timely reminder to celebrate fresh produce, those who grow and supply it and all of the tasty, wonderful recipes that incorporate fruits and vegetables.

How much do you know about the fruit and vegetable industry in Australia?

Fruit

Top 10 Fruit production by volume (t)

Oranges (511k)
Bananas (382k)
Apples (302k)
Table Grapes (215k)
Mandarins (173k)
Watermelons (132k)
Pears (119k)
Nectarines/Peaches (103k)
Avocados (88k)
Strawberries (82k)

Top 10 Fruit production by value ($m)

Table Grapes ($750m)
Bananas ($596m)
Apples ($579m)
Avocados ($450m)
Strawberries ($435m)
Oranges ($415m)
Blueberries ($389m)
Mandarins ($357m)
Nectarines/Peaches ($310m)
Rubus Berries ($216m)

Top 10 Fruit production by export value ($m)

Table Grapes ($623m)
Oranges ($310m)
Mandarins ($187m)
Nectarines/Peaches ($64m)
Mangoes ($34m)
Strawberries ($33m)
Muskmelons ($26m)
Avocados ($25m)
Plums ($20m)
Pears ($16m)

Vegetables

Top 10 Vegetables production by volume (t)

Potatoes (1,389k)
Tomatoes (461k)
Carrots (330k)
Onions (265k)
Head Lettuce (135k)
Pumpkins (116k)
Sweetpotatoes (107k)
Cucumbers (96k)
Cabbage (79k)
Broccoli/Baby Broccoli (77k)

Top 10 Vegetable production by value ($m)

Potatoes ($716m)
Tomatoes ($584m)
Fresh Salad Vegetables ($407m)
Mushrooms ($368m)
Broccoli/Baby Broccoli ($288m)
Onions ($244m)
Fresh Herbs ($231m)
Carrots ($222m)
Capsicums ($213m)
Head Lettuce ($206m)

Top 10 Vegetable production by export value ($m)

Carrots ($100m)
Potatoes – Fresh ($33m)
Onion ($32m)
Asparagus ($20m)
Brassica (Cauliflower and Broccoli) ($18m)
Celery ($9m)
Lettuce ($8m)
Beans ($6m)
Pumpkins ($6m)
Potatoes – Seed ($6m)

Impact of COVID-19 on Fresh Produce

As part of the Harvest to Home dashboard, Nielsen identified some of the trends that we will be seeing in 2021 and beyond due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Fresh produce trends

Total grocery sales reached a three-year high during COVID with fresh categories taking out the top five growth contributors - grocery was the beneficiary of increased at home consumption to the detriment of food service.
Bigger baskets, increased frequency and an increase in the repertoire of shops visited featured strongly in 2020.
Benefiting from more meals at home, vegetables flourished last year with a three-year volume high; however, fruit fared less well and declined 4.7% on year ago.
Longer lasting vegetables – important to shoppers during the early months of COVID-19 – took out the top four spots contributing the most to vegetable volume growth.
Victoria, burdened with the longest period of lockdown, contributed the most to produce growth.
Assisted by an increase in shop repertoire and consumers shopping more locally, other supermarkets such as IGA, Costco and Asian grocers, picked up share in 2020 to the detriment of major supermarkets.

2021 Fresh Produce Predictions

Home cooking – Consumers will continue the trend of more home cooking. Ready-to-eat produce solutions that add interest to the ‘what’s for dinner’ question will supplement sales.
Food as medicine – Consumers will prioritise health and wellness – fresh produce can capitalise on this with on-pack messaging highlighting key benefits (e.g., gut health, immunity boosting).
E-commerce – Consumers will continue to purchase through this growing channel having experienced the convenience during COVID. Having an online strategy in addition to your Bricks & Mortar strategy will be important for 2021.
Pre-packed vs loose – Pre-packed produce will continue to grow as a format, appealing to both convenience and safety concerns of consumers. Sustainability of packaging will be a future focus for industry.

What are the benefits of eating more fruits and vegetables?

Everyone knows that fruits and vegetables are good for you, but that is not enough to get most people to eat enough each day to meet the Recommended Dietary Intake (RDI) of two serves of fruit and five serves of vegetables daily. More people meet their dietary needs for fruit compared with vegetables, with the latest data from the Australian Bureau of Statistics finding around 50% of people eat the recommended intake for fruit and fewer than 7% of people eat enough vegetables to meet the RDI.

The Fruit & Vegetable Consortium, whose member base comprises Australia’s leading health professionals, researchers, and horticulture industry groups, has developed a business case that demonstrates the following benefits for eating more vegetables:

Every $1 invested in a behaviour change program to increase vegetable consumption results in a $10 return on investment.
If Australians ate 10 per cent extra vegetables every day (less than ¼ of a serve), there would be a $100 million reduction in health expenditure per annum.
Australians eating an extra half a serve of vegetables per day would conservatively generate an incremental increase in returns to Aussie growers and supply chain partners of $634 million per annum, which is shared by all parties along the food supply chain.
Increasing vegetable consumption will lead to improved health and well-being outcomes that drive reductions in mental and physical health issues, obesity and other illnesses, which will generate as much as $1 billion economic value after 11 years to Australian taxpayers and Governments at all levels.
Every new job created in the Australian food industry supports an additional job in the regional economy.