Getting your 5 a day

We all know we should eat our ‘5 a day’ but not many of us actually achieve this. Find tips below on how to increase the veg in your diet.

What are the benefits to eating your 5 a day?

To get the benefits of eating your 5 a day, you need to eat a variety of fruits and vegetables, rather than just eating 5 portions of the same type of fruit or veg. Aim for 3 different vegetables and 2 different fruits each day.

There are lots of easy ways to add extra vegetables to your meals such as grated carrots or courgettes in spaghetti Bolognese or cauliflower and green beans in your curry. Red peppers go really well in pasta sauce and you can easily mix peas or spring onions into mashed potato.

What counts as 5 a day?

Getting your 5 a day will give you a range of vitamins and nutrients to stay healthy.

Fresh, frozen, canned, dried and fruit juices/smoothies all count towards your 5 a day, so you have plenty of options to choose from.

One portion of fresh fruit or veg is around 80g, 30g if it’s dried fruit, and 150ml for juices or smoothies. Find out more information on what counts as a portion using the NHS guide.

Veg Power

Co-op is proud to support Veg Power, working together with others in the food industry to inspire kids to eat more veg. Veg Power is a not-for-profit nationwide alliance on a mission to support children and their families to love their vegetables. Find out more on the Veg Power website.

Visit Veg Power

How we can help you get your 5 a day?

We clearly label which foods and drinks contain one of your 5 a day, so you can easily make the right choice. Look out for this logo on pack.

Check out our recipes or social media for some inspiring veg recipes
Look out for our deals on fruit & veg products

Here’s some ideas to help you get more fruit & veg into your diet throughout the day.

Breakfast/Brunch

Include plenty of mushrooms, tomatoes and baked beans in you weekend cooked breakfast
150ml of fruit juice, veg juice or a smoothie will provide you with 1 of your 5 a day. If you’re making your own smoothies, try kale and spinach with kiwi, banana and apple juice.
Use stewed fruit, such as apples or rhubarb instead of milk in your muesli – to make your own bircher pot!
Make your own savoury muffins using veg like sweetcorn, courgette and tomatoes
Avocado on toast is still very popular – why not try mixing some chopped tomatoes in with the avocado?
Sweetcorn fritters are delicious with poached eggs
Sautéed kale with a dash of sweet chilli sauce is a great side for scrambled eggs
Add your favourite fruit to your breakfast cereals
Making overnight oats is an easy way to include fruit in your breakfast

Lunch

Mix your salad up with a Co-op bean salad tin
Add salad to sandwiches
Roast your favourite veg and add to couscous
Make soup to use up any leftover veg
Mash avocado on a cheese sandwich instead of using mayonnaise

Main Meals

Use sweet potato for chips or wedges
Stir frys are a great quick and easy meal
Add plenty of veg to casseroles
Add some sliced veg to pizza – sliced mushrooms are a great addition
Make cauliflower ‘rice’ instead of rice
Cook frozen veg pouches as a quick side dish, or add to soups and sauces
On a BBQ, make veggie skewers and have corn on the cob
Add veggies and cooked potato to upgrade an omelette to a meal
Grate carrot into your bolognese or use courgetti instead of spaghetti

Add kidney beans to your chilli – or go all out and make a 3 bean chilli
Add sweet potato or sweetcorn to curries
Add spring onions, leeks, cabbage, peas to mash. Or make your mash from veggies such as broccoli, carrot, celeriac & sweet potato
Slice carrots, aubergines, courgettes and peppers. Brush with olive oil and cook on a griddle. Serve drizzled with balsamic vinegar and extra virgin olive oil for an easy, tasty Italian dish
Mix veg into your sides – sweetcorn or kidney beans through rice and peas into mash
Blend up mushrooms into sauces to thicken them
Add peas to pasta sauces and use sliced aubergine or butternut squash instead of lasagne sheets

Snacks & others