We Oregonians love our fruits and veggies

Oregoniansmust have paid attention when their mothers told them to eat their fruits andvegetables. A new report from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention indicates Oregon is one of the states with the highest consumption offruits and vegetables.

The timing of the report coincides with the start of aseasonal harvest of local crops that providegood nutritional value.

“Thisreport is really good news about the nutritional health of Oregonians,” saysStephanie Page, special assistant to the director of the Oregon Department ofAgriculture.

“Oregon has thehighest median intake of vegetables among allstates – that means the highest number of times per day that an adult is eatingvegetables. Oregon is also among the highest in fruit consumption. I’mnotsurprised by the good numbers. There is a lot of interest among the partners inagriculture and health advocacy to promote fruits and vegetables as part of ahealthy diet.”

TheCDC report,State Indicator Report onFruits and Vegetables 2013, provides state-level information on fruit andvegetable consumption by adults along with environmental and policy indicatorsthatsupport consumption. Overall, fruit and vegetable consumption is low throughoutthe US. But Oregon andits neighboringstates score high in many categories.

Vegetableconsumption is where Oregon beats everyone. The report indicates adults inOregon consume vegetables 1.9 times per day – nearly two meals. Washington,Idaho, and Californiaare not far behind along with a handful of other states.

At the other end of the national spectrum, Mississippi, Iowa, and the Dakotasconsume vegetables only 1.4 times per day. The report does notquantify howmany vegetables are consumed at those times nor does it identify which type ofvegetable is being eaten. But it appears Oregonians are more likely than consumersin other states toselect vegetables when they are hungry.

Consumptionof fruits is not as frequent as that of vegetables. California, Connecticut,New Hampshire, and Vermont top the list of adults consuming fruit at 1.3 times perday. Oregon standsat 1.1 times per day– the same as Washington and Idaho.Mississippi and Oklahoma adults consume fruit less than once a day, accordingto the report.

Anotherstatistical category includes the percentage of adults who report consumingfruits and vegetables less than once a day. For vegetables, once again, Oregonleads the nation. Only15.3 percent of adults consume vegetables less than oncea day. For fruit consumption, Oregon’s 32 percent is below the nationalaverage, which is good news.

Despitethe encouraging figures, there is room for improvement.

“Wecan certainly drive down that percentage of adults who report consuming fruitless than one time each day,” says Page. “There are many Oregon-grown productsthat can help reducethose percentages, and this is a good time of year to lookfor them.”

Oregonis in the middle of the pack when it comes to acreage that produces fruits andvegetables. But many of them are in abundance throughout the harvest season atfarmers’ markets,roadside stands, and many grocery stores offering freshproduce. There is no doubt that at least a portion of the fruits and vegetablesbeing consumed– and leading to Oregon’s high standing amongstates– comes fromlocal growers.

TheCDC report also gives Oregon high marks for taking advantage of programs thatgive people access to fresh fruits and vegetables.

Many farmers’ markets offerfresh fruits andvegetables to low income, nutritionally needy families andelderly citizens as part of the Oregon Farm Direct Nutrition Program (FDNP) administeredby the state.

In addition, all women andchildren enrolled in the Oregon WIC (Women,Infants, and Children) Program can receive additional vouchers on a monthlybasis to purchase fresh and frozen fruits and vegetables year roundfromauthorized farmers at farm stands and farmers’ markets. It’s called the OregonWIC Fruit and Veggie Voucher program and also allows recipients to buy produceat WIC-authorized grocerystores.

Oregonranks fifth in the nation in percentage of farmers that accept FDNP coupons.Also, there has been a 200 percent increase in the number of farmers’ marketsthat accept SupplementalNutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) benefits since theprevious report in 2009.

Whilemuch attention is paid to fresh products, especially this time of year, thereis plenty of good nutritional value in frozen fruits and vegetables, and theycan be enjoyed all year long.

“Wehave some amazing processors in Oregon that produce frozen fruits andvegetables,” says Page. “Consumers can check the freezer section of theirgrocery store. If you don’t have thefresh fruits and vegetables you arelooking for, that’s another place to look.”

Pagesays even though Oregon’s numbers can get better, the state is doing a great jobof educating people on the value of fruits and vegetables.

“Wehave farm to school programs that help encourage children to consume healthyand nutritious foods such as fruits and vegetables,” she said. “There are many farm-directopportunities to find fruitsand vegetables.

“ODA administers specialty cropblock grant funds that help promote many Oregon products, particularly fruitsand vegetables. We have been involved with other partners in theCelebrateOregon Agriculture campaign, which has featured a variety of fruits andvegetables. We also work with the Ag in the Classroom Foundation. The Oregonprogram has developedsomething called ‘My Oregon Plate’, which helps kids andtheir parents find out about different healthy fruits and vegetables that canbe included as part of a nutritious meal.”

Morepromotion, more education, and more access. Those three components hold the keyto improving Oregon’s already strong national standing when it comes to fruitand vegetableconsumption.

This article provided by Bruce Pokarney of the Oregon Depoartment of Agriculture.