Impact of seasonality of 5 a day target: comparison between Scotland and France

Consuming enough fruit and vegetables is essential for a healthy diet and to lower the risk of noncommunicable diseases. Due to this, health authorities have recommended the consumption of five portions of fruit and vegetable a day (five-a-day). The purpose of this paper is to compare the situation of France and Scotland regarding the five-a-day consumption per person. Of particular interest, given the known seasonality of the supply of fruit and vegetables, is how this affects the consumption (e.g., is the complying similar all over the year? What are the effects brought by prices over the year?). The comparison uses Kantar Worldpanel data for both countries: France from 2011 to 2023 and Scotland 2006 to 2023. As part of the comparison, an estimation of a demand for fruit and vegetables was performed for each country including seasonal terms. The results indicate a marked seasonal pattern and elasticities that also evolve over the year.