Investigation of Interventions for Increasing Consumption of Fruit and Vegetables in Australia for Better Health

Abstract

This thesis investigates novel strategies for increasing consumption of fruit and vegetables for better health. The literature review analysed the effectiveness of global social marketing campaigns promoting consumption of fruit and vegetables. The research experiments focused on studying interventions for increasing vegetable consumption in Australia. The first experiment was a national online survey designed to evaluate the Veggycation website and its appeal to particular demographic groups of consumers. The second experiment investigated top-of-mind health benefits consumers perceive about specific vegetables, to guide the use of nutrition and health claims on vegetable marketing collateral. The third experiment was an online survey of NSW respondents to examine the impact of a celebrity cooking show video-clip on consumer intentions and behaviour regarding vegetable consumption. Overall, the findings of this research highlight that consumer demographics have a significant influence on fruit and vegetable consumption. Children are a good target group for campaigns promoting fruit and vegetable uptake as they show the greatest change in consumption and carry their healthy eating habits into adulthood. Women demonstrate greater knowledge and attitudes towards vegetable intake. They also exhibit higher cooking confidence towards vegetables and are generally the primary shopper influencing family consumption. The understanding of specific vegetable related health benefits is low among the Australian population. Customisation of promotional interventions would assist in bringing a positive change in vegetable intake. The Australian vegetable industry would benefit from promoting the Veggycationwebsite in conjunction with public health organisations. Linking public health experts with TV celebrity chefs would also assist in reinforcing the message. This thesis makes a substantial contribution to the existing body of knowledge in the study of vegetable consumption.