Almost 9 in 10 (89 %) parents across the UK are concerned that their children aren’t getting enough vitamins and minerals in their everyday diets, according to a new study.

The study, which surveyed parents across Great Britain, suggests the rising cost of living is partly to blame, with over 1 in 3 (38 %) saying food and drink rich in vitamins and minerals can be expensive to buy. The survey also revealed almost half (47 %) of British parents have no clear idea what foods or drinks their children are consuming at school – making it difficult to ensure they are maintaining a healthy, balanced diet.

However, the study also revealed a lack of awareness among parents about the levels of essential vitamins and minerals in everyday staples such as fruit juice – which are inexpensive and easy to consume as part of children’s daily routine.

Fruit juice is an easy, affordable way for children to get a head start on key nutrients*: for example, a standard 150 ml glass of orange juice provides more than 90 % of the recommended vitamin C intake. A recent study published in the journal, Nutrition Research Reviews, found that 100 % fruit juice currently provides over a quarter (26 %) of the vitamin C intake for children across the UK, with the average child consuming just two to three small glasses a week.

While most Brits recognise that orange and other fruit juices are a good source of vitamin C – essential for a healthy immune system, skin health, and helping to increase iron absorption – the research revealed that many parents are unaware of the added health benefits provided by fruit juice which contains vitamins, minerals and plant bioactives.

For example, 9 in ten parents are unaware that orange juice contains folate – proven to support normal immune health and helping to reduce tiredness and fatigue. The majority of UK parents (87 %) also don’t know that orange juice contains potassium, a mineral which supports normal muscle function – helping children to stay fit and active.

The study revealed the small amount of calories in a typical small glass of fruit juice – just 20-40 kcal per day or 1-2 % of a child’s average daily calorie intake. Almost half (46 %) of parents across the UK mistakenly think fruit juice contains added sugar, despite the fact that 100 % fruit juice never contains added sugars, colours or preservatives and cannot be diluted with water under UK and European law.

Leading nutritionist and dietitian, Dr Carrie Ruxton, said: “Children’s health remains a top priority for parents across the country. However, with continuing financial pressures and uncertainty around kids’ food consumption at school, parents are finding it hard to keep track of what their children are eating and encourage healthier food choices.

“Although promoting and maintaining the health of your kids may feel like stressful at times, there are easy, affordable ways to ensure your children are fighting fit, and armed with all the vitamins and minerals they need. A simple first step is ensuring your kids have a daily glass of orange juice, which not only provides up 90% of the vitamin C recommendation per day** but is packed with a wide range of nutrients and antioxidants to support immunity, energy levels and active lives.”

Carrie Ruxton’s top five easy, quick and affordable ways to keep children healthy are:

1. Drinking Daily Juice: Giving children a daily glass of 100 % orange juice with breakfast will naturally increase their intakes of vitamin C, folate and potassium to support normal immune health and muscle function. It doesn’t matter whether you buy a carton of fruit juice or squeeze it at home – both are rich in vitamin C.
2. Fibre-tastic: Fibre is an essential nutrient to encourage the growth of beneficial gut bacteria and promote healthy digestion. An affordable way to weave this into your kids’ diets is to swap sugary breakfast cereals for wheat biscuits or bran flakes, or add peas, beans or sweetcorn to evening meals.
3. Taste the rainbow: Aim to give your kids five portions of fruit and vegetables every day. Try adding blended or grated veg into pasta sauces, or bananas to sweeten desserts. Buying frozen veggies and fruit is an affordable way to preserve key ingredients for longer.
4. Delicious Dairy: Yogurt drinks and desserts are often a good source of calcium and vitamin D for children, which are important for growth and maintaining strong bones. They are also relatively affordable when brought in multi-packs.
5. Get fishy: Giving children a portion of oily fish each week will provide inflammatory omega-3 fats to improve brain function, alongside key bone strengthening nutrients such as zinc and selenium. Tinned fish such as tuna is affordable, has a long shelf life, and is an easy after school meal served with pasta, sweetcorn and mayonnaise.

*Walton J & Kehoe L (2024) Current perspectives and challenges in the estimation of fruit juice consumption across the lifecycle in Europe – PubMed (nih.gov).
** Salar FJ et al. (2024) Comparison of vitamin C and flavanones between freshly squeezed orange juices and commercial 100% orange juices from four European countries – PubMed (nih.gov)

Plenish, the fastest growing shots brand in the UK¹, has launched its biggest campaign to date across its shots portfolio. The social and PR led activation will see boosted posts across Instagram and TikTok channels, with Sunday Times best-selling author and qualified nutritionist Emily English advocating for the brand. This campaign will help keep Plenish front of mind with existing shoppers, and targeting new audiences, supporting retailers to drive sales within the health shots category while brand awareness is at an all-time high.

It comes well timed as the brand has conducted nationwide research in a poll of over 2,000 adults and 1,000 school children (aged 6-16) to reveal the significant nutritional knowledge gap between adults and their kids. The research revealed one in five (20 %) British school children were able to correctly identify that there are 13 essential vitamins, compared with only 5 % of adults. In fact, 38 % of children know the body can naturally produce Vitamin D, compared with only 31 % of adults. Only 12 % of adults believe they consume their essential vitamins daily, with 22 % not knowing a good source of vitamins, and 13 % believing too much meal preparation is required.

The Plenish range is designed to help people drink their way to wellness through potent superfoods, the products are easily accessible to health-conscious consumers making it the perfect product for adults and kids to get their daily vitamin intake. The range is packed with cold-pressed, plant-based ingredients to meet a range of functional benefits, containing no added sugar, preservatives or flavourings while also delivering on great taste. In fact, Plenish now makes up 19 % of the UK’s Juice Shots category MAT, currently valued at £5.71m², so it’s in the ideal position to help retailers cater to shopper demand and to continue to grow the category.

Russell Goldman, Managing Director at Plenish, comments “The research revealed some shocking results on nutritional and vitamin knowledge in adults versus children. The purpose of our campaign is to highlight this gap and drive awareness of the importance and ease of getting the correct vitamin intake and consumption of fruit and vegetables each day, particularly via our Plenish range.

“This comes at no better time following confirmation of Ginger Immunity and Berry Gut Health going live across 1,500 Tesco Express stores within its meal deal offering. The retailer now offers the full range of Plenish shots’ flavours and benefits, supported by in-store activity to help drive sales, such as our new chilled functional bay display.”

The campaign, which began its rollout this June, has seen a London pop-up on Portobello Road – Little Shot Shop – staffed exclusively by kids, it featured a market stall owner, reporter and nutritionist. The stand sampled Plenish Turmeric Recovery, Ginger Immunity and our new Mango Sunshine shots while quizzing adults passing by on their vitamin knowledge. There is also a sponsorship of Forest Bike Rides, live now, with Tesco stores selling Plenish shots in London on their interactive map. Alongside this, there will be instore POS activity in Tesco which will be live for a whole year.

The Plenish range of juices and shots is also available at Tesco, Sainsbury’s, Asda, Co-op, Ocado as well as wholesale.

¹NielsenIQ RMS, Total Coverage GB, Britvic Defined Juice Shots Category, incl Discounters, value Sales Data, MAT to 25.05.24
²NielsenIQ RMS, Total Coverage GB, Britvic Defined Juice Shots Category, incl Discounters, Value Sales Data, MAT to 25.05.24

The Scottish Government today announced that it has shelved plans to implement a ban on the sale of energy drinks to children.

Responding to the news, British Soft Drinks Association Director General, Gavin Partington, said: “We welcome this recognition from the Scottish Government that voluntary measures introduced by industry and implemented by many of our retail partners have had a significant impact on stopping the sale of energy drinks to children.

“The BSDA’s voluntary Code of Practice on energy drinks, which was introduced by and for our members in 2010, contains a number of stringent points on responsible marketing, meaning BSDA members do not market or promote energy drinks to under-16s, nor do they sample products with this age group. In addition, their energy drinks carry an advisory note stating ‘not recommended for children’.

“BSDA members remain committed to supporting the responsible sale of energy drinks.”

Moderate consumption of 100% orange juice should be encouraged in children due to its multiple health benefits and lack of negative impacts on body weight, according to a spate of recent and previous research studies on the topic.

Consuming 100 % orange juice can help supplement the intake of key vitamins, minerals and health-associated bioactive compounds that may be missing in a child’s diet. A growing number of research studies has revealed that children who regularly drink 100 % orange juice have higher intakes of key nutrients, higher quality diets, and may have healthier lifestyle habits, like greater physical activity levels, than children who do not drink OJ.  Plus, recent studies align with past studies which help debunk the myth about 100 % orange juice and weight gain by showing that OJ intake is not associated with weight gain in children.

“Misconceptions about the perceived lack of health benefits of 100 % orange juice are unfortunate and could lead kids to potentially miss out on the nutritional benefits that OJ provides,” said Dr. Rosa Walsh, director of scientific research at the Florida Department of Citrus. “However, study after study confirms that 100 % orange juice not only has a place in the diets of children, but it can also serve as an easy way for parents to provide key nutrients without fear of adverse effect on body weight when served in moderation. By sharing the big picture these results show, we can help correct these misconceptions and empower both consumers and health professionals to make diet decisions grounded in scientific evidence.”

As Americans’ fruit and vegetable consumption continues to erode, particularly among young children, 100 % orange juice could play a key role in providing some of the nutrients kids need. A 4 oz. serving of 100 % orange juice is an excellent source of vitamin C and an 8 oz. serving for older children is a good source of potassium, folate and thiamin while still meaningfully contributing these nutrients at smaller serving sizes. Fortified OJ additionally contributes calcium and vitamin D. Potassium, calcium and vitamin D are considered nutrients of public health concern in the 2020-2025 Dietary Guidelines for Americans.

Research also shows that children who drink 100 % orange juice have higher total fruit consumption, lower intake of added sugar and tend to have higher diet quality and higher physical activity levels compared to those who do not drink OJ.^1-4

Further, 100 % orange juice is not being overconsumed by children, despite reports to the contrary. In fact, orange juice consumption by children has declined in recent years along with the amount of key nutrients provided by it. On average, 100 % orange juice accounts for less than 1 % of total daily calorie intake in the diets of children and about 4 % of calories from beverages.² Children are on average consuming 100 % orange juice well below the 100 % juice limits established by the American Academy of Pediatrics, which supports 4 to 6 ounces for children under age 7 and 8 ounces for older children.

Lastly, consumption of 100 % orange juice is not associated with overweight or obesity in children. In fact, research shows that in some cases, 100 % orange juice consumers had less chance of having elevated body weight and may be taller compared to those who do not consume OJ.^1-5 This lack of association between 100 % orange juice intake and body weight is supported by both cross-sectional^1-3,6,7 and longitudinal^4,5 analyses.

1. Sakaki et al. Nutrients. 2019;11(11):2687.
2. Maillot et al. Front Nutr. 2020;7:63.
3. O’Neil CE et al. Pediatric Research and Child Health. 2020;4(1).
4. Sakaki JR et al. Public Health Nutr. 2020;1-8.
5. Sakaki JR et al. Pediatr Obes. 2021;e12781.
6. O’Neil CE et al. Nutr Res. 2011;31(9):673–682.
7. Wang Y et al. Public Health Nutr. 2012;15(12):2220-2227.

Current beverage labeling regulations appear to fall short of helping parents identify the ingredients, sugar and juice makeup of beverages they purchase for their children, a recent study published in Pediatric Obesity suggests. This has researchers calling for changes to beverage labeling regulations to increase transparency and help consumers choose healthier beverages.

The experimental online study included over 1,600 parents who had healthy children aged 1 to 5 years old. Parents were shown product label information for commonly consumed children’s beverages, including flavoured waters, 100 % fruit juice, and juice drinks and other beverages containing added sugars or non-nutritive (artificial) sweeteners. Some parents were shown only front labels, while some were shown both front and back or side labels which included the Nutrition Facts panel and other information. Study participants then answered questions concerning the sugar and percent juice content of the beverages.

About one-third of participants indicated they were not confident they could identify the added sugar and juice content of beverages. Only about half of study participants (48 percent) said they looked at the Nutrition Facts panel all or most of the time when choosing beverages for their children.

Overall, participants frequently underestimated the percent of juice in 100 % fruit juice. Even though the percent juice was stated on the package front for the 100 % fruit juice product in the study, only 51 percent of parents who were shown only the package front correctly identified the juice percentage. When exposed to additional information on the back and side panels, 37 percent still could not correctly identify the percent juice and 40 percent incorrectly said that 100 % juice contained added sugars.

Conversely, participants frequently overestimated the amount of pure fruit juice in sugar-sweetened juice drinks and beverages. For an added-sugar product that looks similar to 100 % orange juice but contains only 5 percent juice, almost all participants (98 percent) could not accurately state the amount of pure juice just by looking at the front of the label and, on average, estimated that the product contained 45 percent pure fruit juice, 40 percent higher than the actual juice content. Fewer than half of participants who additionally looked at back/side labels could correctly identify the percent juice content and, on average, estimated that the beverage contained 24 percent pure juice. For beverages that are not 100 % fruit juice there is no requirement to identify sweeteners or juice content on the front label.

“The results are striking and this study suggests that labels for 100 % fruit juice and fruit beverages or drinks are not working as intended and for many parents may result in misunderstandings and confusion when trying to choose healthful beverages for their children,” said Gail Rampersaud, registered dietitian nutritionist in the Scientific Research Department of the Florida Department of Citrus. “Consumers need more education coupled with labels that are clearer and easier to understand,” added Rampersaud.

The results suggest that lack of knowledge and clear labeling may lead parents to choose less healthy added-sugar beverages over 100 % juices, such as 100 % orange juice. The researchers suggest that the Food and Drug Administration allow label declarations that will increase transparency concerning juice percentage and sweetener content, particularly on front of package, to help consumers make healthful beverage choices.

New research shows no adverse association between change in Body Mass Index (BMI) and consumption of 100 % orange juice among older children adding to a growing list of studies suggesting children and teens can benefit from regularly drinking 100 % orange juice without concerns about weight gain. The four-year longitudinal study published in Pediatric Obesity found that drinking 100 % orange juice was associated with smaller changes in BMI over time in girls, with no significant effect on BMI in boys.

The analysis by researchers at the University of Connecticut and Harvard’s School of Public Health and Medical School included children ages 9 to 16 who were followed from 2004 through 2008.¹ The analysis showed there was a clear lack of a connection between orange juice and increased BMI in this age group. One hundred percent orange juice contributed, on average, between 40 to 50 calories to the daily diet while milk contributed almost four times that amount, from 150 to 180 calories. This amount of orange juice represents under 4 ounces per day on average, which falls well below the recommendations of the American Academy of Pediatrics, which suggests limits for 100 % fruit juice consumption of 8 oz. daily for children over 7. The 2020-2025 Dietary Guidelines for Americans counts 100 % fruit juice as a fruit serving and recommends that primary beverages either be calorie free – especially water – or contribute beneficial nutrients, such as fat-free and low-fat milk and 100 % fruit juice.²

“Children in this age group fail to consume adequate amounts of fruit and certain micronutrients such as vitamin C and potassium,” said Dr. Rosa Walsh, Director of Scientific Research at the Florida Department of Citrus. “Although the preferred choice is whole fruit, this research supports that moderate consumption of 100 % orange juice can be a beneficial addition to the diet to help meet fruit intake recommendations and is unlikely to contribute to childhood obesity.”

This longitudinal study, funded by an unrestricted grant by the Florida Department of Citrus, adds to the growing body of scientific research supporting the role of 100 % orange juice in adults’ and children’s diets.

• Another data analysis of nearly 14,000 Americans, ages 4 and older, concluded that people who drink 100% orange juice have lower BMI and healthier lifestyle behaviors than people who don’t drink orange juice.³
• A longitudinal analysis of more than 7,300 children and adolescents in the GUTSII cohort concluded that 100% fruit juice or OJ intake was not associated with negative effects on body weight, BMI or BMI percentile. In fact, higher OJ intake was associated with greater changes (positive) in height for girls.⁴
• A trend analysis for children reported that despite higher energy intakes, there was no significant difference in physical activity levels, percent overweight or obese, or BMI z-score when comparing kids who consume 100 % orange juice versus those who don’t.⁵
• A comprehensive review performed by the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics for their Evidence Analysis Library examined the association between 100 % fruit juice intake and weight in children and concluded that the evidence does not support an association between 100 % fruit juice consumption and weight status or adiposity in children ages 2 to 18 years of age.⁶

Every glass of 100 % orange juice supports overall health and can help adults and children meet intake recommendations for key nutrients they may be lacking in their diets. An 8-oz. serving size contains vital vitamins and antioxidants, including vitamin C, potassium, folate, hesperidin and more, with no added sugar. From helping improve diet quality to providing key nutrients that can help support a healthy immune system, 100 % orange juice offers a number of health benefits and can also easily be incorporated into simple, great-tasting recipes.

About the Florida Department of Citrus
The Florida Department of Citrus is an executive agency of Florida government charged with the marketing, research and regulation of the Florida citrus industry. Its activities are funded by a tax paid by growers on each box of citrus that moves through commercial channels. The industry employs more than 37,000 people, provides an annual economic impact of $6.5 billion to the state, and contributes hundreds of millions of dollars in tax revenues that help support Florida’s schools, roads and health care services.

¹Sakaki JR et al. Pediatric Obesity. 2021;Mar 1:e12781.
²USDA and USDHHS. Dietary Guidelines for Americans, 2020-2025. 9th Edition. December 2020. Available at DietaryGuidelines.gov.
³Wang et al. Pub Health Nutr. 2012;15(12):2220-2227.
⁴Sakaki et al. Public Health Nutr. 2020 Oct 7;1-8.
⁵Nicklas et al. International Journal of Child Health and Nutrition. 2020;9(3):100-114.
⁶Evidence Analysis Library (EAL), Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics. Dietary and Metabolic Impact of Fruit Juice Consumption Evidence Analysis Project.

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VOG Products processed over 30,000 tonnes of organic fruit in the 2019/20 business year. Many factors, starting from the South Tyrol – Südtirol location and the partnership with Bioland, underlie the growing demand.

From 2017 to the present the organic percentage of the output of VOG Products, the modern, innovative fruit processing business in Italy’s South Tyrol – Südtirol region, has tripled. But why is interest in certified organic foods growing so strongly? The answer is apparently simple but actually implies a great deal more: because organic is added value.

“Customers identify it with a healthier product: people want to make a choice that’s good for them, for the environment they live in, and also for nature. This is certainly a trend, but for an ever-increasing number of people it’s more than that: a lifestyle and a new experience”, we are told by Martin Bristot, who works in the organic sector as Senior Key Account Manager at VOG Products.

An Organic brand also represents trust: VOG Products only purchases organic fruit from its members in Trentino-South Tyrol, mainly Bio Val Venosta and Bio Südtirol. “Through traceability back to the farmer, we are able to give the market a strong, clear signal: we know who grows our organic products with hard work and passion,” Mr Bristot confirms. “Since the European market’s two biggest organic producers are members in our owner cooperative, we enjoy preferential access to raw material. Basically, we are able to access supplies all year round.”

Through the partnership with Bioland, VOG Products takes another major step forward: almost all its organic raw materials also meet the Bioland standards. “The whole chain, starting from the farmers through the cooperative to VOG Products itself as processing company, is certified from A to Z, so the final product is certified, too”, Mr Bristot explains.

This label’s private law requirements are much more stringent than the criteria enforced by law on the EU’s biological label: farmers implement the seven Bioland principles, which also embrace the circular economy, biodiversity, and the maintenance of soil fertility to combat global warming. A Bioland farm has to operate in accordance with 100% environment-friendly standards, and the use of fertilisers and pesticides is also more strictly controlled. When it comes to processing, fewer than half the food additives approved under EU organic production regulations also meet the Bioland conformity criteria. In general, with Bioland, additives and auxiliary materials, processing methods, packaging, labelling and the quality guarantee are specifically tailored to each group of products, and tight restrictions are often imposed.

Over time, major food retailers have recognised its potentials and have brought their strategies into line with the Bioland standards. Once again, VOG Products benefits from its location in South Tyrol, the only province outside Germany to have a Bioland association.

The market is particularly receptive to pulps and fruit juices for children. “We are able to differentiate our products in order to satisfy even the toughest standards on organic foods for infants”, Mr Bristot adds.

VOG Products also benefits from members’ variety of products and forward-looking varietal strategy: “We can also offer an organic version of variety growers’ club apples such as Pink Lady. On request, we are even able to supply a single-variety product”.

Recently, demand for organic products has recorded constant growth, a trend of which VOG Products is well aware: although in the 2017/18 business year it processed only a little over 10,000 tonnes of organic produce, this volume rose to about 20,000 tonnes in 2018/19 and passed the 30,000 tonne mark in 2019/20. Output of organic apple pulp and juice more than doubled in the same period.

In the future, the added value of organic output will become more and more fundamental for VOG Products: in the years to 2023, the cultivated land used for organic production will be expanded by about 10% per annum.

VOG Products is an innovative company specialising in the processing of apples and other fruit. It is owned by 18 cooperatives in South Tyrol and Trentino and four producers’ organisations comprising over 13,000 family-run enterprises. Every year, VOG Products process more than 300,000 tonnes of raw goods to create healthy, safe products for the international market.

As World Education Day commences on September 28, Chiquita Brands International, the world’s foremost banana purveyor, is proud to announce it has reached 33 % of its education aid program goals. The goal is to reach 100 schools and 20,000 children by the year 2020, and to date, Chiquita has provided support for 33 schools. This includes building and renovating school infrastructure as well as providing learning materials for the children. Chiquita currently provides these educational benefits for the children of its farm-workers throughout the countries where its business is rooted, including Costa Rica, Guatemala, Panama and Honduras.

The current educational aid program supports the children of Chiquita farm workers. In Costa Rica and Guatemala, Chiquita provides school children a special kit containing many of the basic materials required by the Education Ministry, while in Panama and Honduras, Chiquita provides scholarships.

In addition, Chiquita initiates and supports community projects, such as investing in school infrastructure, helping children receive an education, creating environmental awareness and promoting social empowerment. Chiquita firmly believes that helping children receive a valuable primary education will have a positive, long-lasting impact on not only the children, but also the communities they reside in.

Chiquita is not only involved in education for school-aged children, but also looks to provide healthcare aid as well. For example, in Costa Rica children in the banana farm neighborhoods are invited to receive visual and dental care, education and free teeth cleaning kits. The impact of such outreach is especially valued in areas where educational levels tend to be low, and where access to diagnostic facilities is limited due to distance from medical centers and the cost involved.

Over the first two months of 2018 UK retailers Waitrose, Tesco, Co-op, Asda, Sainsbury’s, Aldi, Lidl and Morrisons – the UK’s seven largest food retailers – all implemented their own bans on the sale of energy drinks to children. This is despite the lack of any formal direction or regulation from the UK government, observes GlobalData a leading data and analytics company.

In March 2018 Boots became the first non-supermarket retailer to join them. Specifically, this means banning the sale of products with a caffeine content of more than 150 mg per litre to under-16s. The fact this potentially profit limiting step has been taken without government regulation or a call for retailers to take voluntary action is unusual, but emphasises the importance large retail chains place on maintaining a responsible brand image.

Associate Analyst at GlobalData, William Grimwade commented, “Major retailers have become extremely concerned about monitoring opinion of themselves on social media, and the highly competitive nature of British supermarket retailing means retailers do not want to be seen to be out of step with their competitors on issues like this”.

The National Association of Schoolmasters Union of Women Teachers (NASUWT) has gone as far as attributing some cases of poor behaviour of children in schools to high energy drink consumption. The #NotforChildren campaign has become prominent on social media among a variety of stakeholders, including health concerned celebrity chef Jamie Oliver, the charity Action on Sugar, the MP Maria Caulfield and NASUWT, the teachers union.

Grimwade adds, „Retailers and energy drinks producers are also likely to suffer from the introduction of the sugar tax in the UK from 8th April 2018. The vast majority of energy drinks brands rely on sugar, as well as caffeine and other additives, to allow them to give the consumer the energy rush their brand depends on. This means that they will be unable to reduce sugar content and their prices in independent retailers still selling them to under 16’s will be forced upwards, compounding the effect of the supermarkets ban.“