How well do you know your cucumbers from your courgettes? Take our quiz
Eating plenty of fruits and vegetables is crucial to maintain a healthy diet, and it's important to include a wide variety of them to ensure you're benefiting from all the different nutrients they have to offer.
However, research shows that Britons tend to stick to the most familiar vegetables, and therefore cannot correctly identify a number of different types. A 2021 survey by nutritional supplement company Future You found that, on average, Brits eat only four different green vegetables on rotation.
When it comes to less common greens, the survey found that 60% could not recognise kale, while nearly a fifth could not identify leeks. One in five had trouble identifying garden peas, and one in 10 could not recognise cabbages and asparagus.
A more recent survey shows that children are also struggling to identify and name common vegetables. Research by Borough Market in London, in partnership with School Food Matters, found that only around a third of more than 1,000 seven to 11-year-olds could recognise courgette and squash, and even fewer knew what beetroot looked like.
Incorporating a wide range of fruits and vegetables in your daily meals is highly recommended by nutrition experts. Many suggest eating a rainbow of plants to help you achieve your Five-a-Day, as recommended by the NHS, and it also means you will get plenty of essential nutrients keep you healthy.
Test your fruit and veg knowledge with our quiz below. Scroll down on the picture below to take part.
Read more about health and nutrition:
How to eat 30 plants a week to boost gut health, according to Tim Spector (Yahoo Life UK, 5-min read)
Why you should always wash fruit and veg before eating them – and the best technique to use (The Conversation, 5-min read)
Homegrown fruit and veg makes for healthier diet and less waste, study suggests (PA Media, 3-min read)
