Americans eat far less than the recommended amounts of fruits and vegetables, and a common excuse is that they cost too much. Not so, say USDA economists, who examined the average retail price of 156 commonly consumed fruits and vegetables, fresh or processed. They conclude a consumer on a 2,000-calorie-a-day diet, considered normal for an adult, “could satisfy fruit and vegetable recommendations in the 2015-2020 Dietary Guidelines for Americans for $2.10-$2.60 per day.” That is a modest 4-percent higher than a 2008 estimate of the cost of two cups of fruit and two-and-a-half cups of vegetables daily.
“Our retail price estimates are very broad averages and do not reflect what individual households pay for specific products at particular stores,” says the Economic Research Service study, which used a national average retail price over a one-year period. “Some fruit and vegetable prices vary seasonally and annual averages may disproportionately reflect in-season prices in some cases.” Watermelon, bananas, frozen orange juice, potatoes and dried lentils were among the least expensive fruits and vegetables; fresh asparagus, fresh raspberries and frozen artichokes were the priciest.
Poor families must budget carefully to satisfy the guidelines without running out of money, say the four economists who wrote the ERS report. A family of four receiving food stamps would have to earmark 42 percent of its weekly benefit for fruits and vegetables and to stick to lower-priced produce for the most part. Families in the lowest two income quintiles allot 12-13 percent of their food spending to fruits and vegetables for consumption at home; the U.S. average is 26 percent. To comply with the guidelines, a lower-income household would have to allocate a much larger share of its food dollar to fruits and vegetables and less to other types of food.
A variety of methods have been proposed for boosting fruit and vegetable consumption by lower-income Americans, such as subsidies to make them more affordable and encouraging stores to stock more produce. “Encouraging consumers to make room in their food budgets for fruits and vegetables by spending less money on products high in solid fats, added sugars and sodium might also help,” says the study.
The new edition of the Dietary Guidelines, issued early this year, recommends a diet rich in fruit, vegetables, grains, low-fat or fat-free dairy and a variety of proteins, and one which limits added sugar, salt, and saturated fats and trans fats. Less than 10 percent of calories should come from added sugar or saturated fat.
“About three-fourths of the population has an eating pattern that is low in vegetables, fruits, dairy and oils,” says the Dietary Guidelines report. More than 80 percent do not eat enough vegetables and more than 75 percent do not consume enough fruit. In addition, most Americans eat more than the recommended amounts of added sugar, saturated fat and salt. More than half meet or exceed the recommendations for grains and protein but not in the variety that is suggested.
“In addition, the eating patterns of many are too high in calories. More than two-thirds of all adults and nearly one-third of all children and youth in the United States are either overweight or obese,” say the guidelines.