Purpose : To examine food system experts explanation for the consistently low level of fruit and vegetable consumption in australia and what can be done increase it .
Design : A qualitative survey of food system experts .
Setting : The survey was administered online to experts across Australia between August and November 2008 using surveyMonkey.com
Subjects : Key informant (N=332) in sectors ranging from farming through food waste disposal; 122 usable responses were analyzed .
Measures : Opinion about fruit and vegetable consumption were collected through open ended questions. Respondent background information was also collected.
Analysis : Indentification of key them via qualitative analysis.
Result : Many reasons for inadequate consumption were suggested, most of which related to inadequacies in the supply of fruit and vegetable. However, the most commonly cited solutions focused on increasing consumer demand.
Conclusion : The incongruence between reasons for inadequate consumption and proposed solution presents a challenge and suggests a need to shift policy priorities toward improving the supply of fruit and vegetable. Several well-coordinated approached between the various sectors are needed to maximize outcomes. They include some outside the scope of traditional health promotion efforts.