Member Article

North/South divide on healthy eating

People in the North East spend around £100 a year less on fruit and veg than those in southern areas, new research has found.

People in London and the South East spend much more on ‘better’ food than people in Scotland and the North East, the analysis by mySupermarket.co.uk found.

UK shoppers spend an average of £470 a year on fruit and vegetables and £147 a year on unhealthy snack food, the figures show, but Scotland and the North East are at the bottom of the league table.

In Scotland, shoppers spend £418 on fruit and veg and £156 on snacks, and in the North East they spend £403 on healthy food and £153 on snacks.

A spokesman for the price comparison website, Jonny Steel, said: “We had hoped that the North/South divide was a term from the last century, but unfortunately there are clear differences between people’s average spend on fruit and vegetables in the North and South of Britain.

“While spending on fruit and vegetables far outweighs spending on snack foods, there is still a misconception amongst some shoppers that healthy foods are more expensive than convenience snack foods.

“Snacking on fruit and vegetables can be more cost-effective than buying pre-prepared snacks, not to mention the nutritional benefits of following a diet with lots of portions of fruit and veg and low in saturated fat.”

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by Ruth Mitchell .