It’s not only a concerning percentage, it’s one that is constantly growing, according to Catherine Velisha, a third-generation farmer and managing director of Velisha Farms in Werribee South, who over the last few years has been exploring education programs that are helping young people value vegetables and the role they play in their health.
Even before COVID, and certainly since, there’s been quite a dramatic drop per serve, she says.
“These aren’t exact numbers, but I think it was about 2.2 serves of veg (75 grams per serve) before COVID, and now I think we’re at about 1.6 serves – so that’s a huge drop, and that number is continuing to drop,” Velisha tells EducationHQ.
The farming expert says the ramifications that numbers like this will have on health systems, and the problems that we will see as a society, will snowball.
“So while that number seems shocking in the now, I’m sure the repercussions of 20, 30, 40 years when we’ve got rates of heart disease and obesity and all the ramifications of that – bowel cancer, nutrient deficiencies, digestive problems etc. – will be massive.”
In response, Velisha is actively contributing to being part of the solution by creating her own RTO called VEG Education, which runs curriculum-aligned farm gate programs through a different lens.
She and her team host school visits and have created a range of teaching resources and content, including behind-the-scenes videos of their farming practices to show how vegetables are grown and recipes to showcase their fabulous taste and nutritional value.
“We don’t just use the health benefits of vegetables, I guess, to entice the children,” Velisha explains.
“What we do is use the farm, the farmer, and the way our veggies are grown and who’s involved in that and add that very authentic voice and a bit of a love story to try to build some connection for young people, and also for them to have an understanding about how cheap vegetables truly are.”
One of the main reasons stated by consumers as to why they don’t eat vegetables is that they believe they’re expensive. However, an average serve of vegetables is only 65 cents.
“What we try to do is break down about how value-driven vegetables are – once you’ve seen what goes into growing them, but also ways to cook them, ways to store them, and ways to use the whole lot of a vegetable, you can garner even greater value.”
Valisha says kids aren’t eating enough for a few reasons – one being competitor products are becoming more and more addictive.
“So as the science improves around that, what we’re competing against isn’t food, it’s chemicals that are designed to be wanted,” she says.
Secondly, people are time poor, and gone are the days where there’s a parent at home who can consider what their children are eating and put effort and time into that.
“There are generally now either a lot of single-parent households, but also two parents who are working full-time – so chopping up vegetables, planning dinners, cooking and things like that has become harder and harder for people.
“It’s not about, again, blaming, these are the realities. It’s about trying to find ways and solutions to fix that – and we try to do that with the veg education programs, give people tangible solutions and ways to help fit more vegetables into their diet.”
Valisha has recently finished a report for a Nuffield research scholarship she has undertaken, focused on grower-led education programs across the globe, which saw her analyse programs from the UK, USA, Ireland and Australia.
Keen to understand how her own programs could be improved and expanded, the scholarship involved interstate and international travel, and her resultant research reveals a growing trend of collaboration between the agricultural sector, educational institutions and local communities to help people better understand food production and promote healthier eating habits.
She found programs like the National Farm to School Network (NFSN) in the US and LEAF Education in the UK share common themes that are crucial to their success.
These include hands-on learning experiences, integration into school curricula, use of digital platforms to expand reach, and collaboration between farmers, educators and community organisations.
Catherine Velisha, pictured bottom left, says she hopes her team’s educational approach not only fosters a greater appreciation for fresh produce among children but also helps address misconceptions about costs and accessibility.
“My findings, largely, were that when you have a grower or a group of growers at the centre of your program, children and young people are more interested and more receptive to the messages that are being shared.
“It is a better way, I guess, of creating some behaviour change as opposed to it just being dieticians or others in similar roles giving the message.”
Surprisingly, Valisha says the fall in vegetable consumption is very much a phenomenon unique to western countries.
“China, for example, has the highest consumption of vegetables and it applies to their young people as well. It’s much higher than even the recommended intake.”
“The UK, Ireland, and the US have invested heavily in programs that are, I guess, broad and based on behaviour change, which include the full supply chain,” Valisha shares.
“And I think what it is, is there needs to be probably a financial avenue and incentives for growers to be able to also invest their time and resources and facilities and products and everything else into these programs to get better bang for their buck.”
Valisha says she’s drawn on her research to improve how her team approaches education.
“We’re definitely on the right track, but we can’t rest on our laurels, we need to be forever evolving and making sure that the information and the way it’s presented is relevant, attractive, making sure that messages are short, that there’s engagement – and that we’re not just telling people facts, because what we know is facts don’t change behaviour.”
