Fruit in your food

Abstract

Throughout history, there have been different attitudes towards eating fruit in the human diet. Currently, fruit is mainly perceived as a snack, that is to be eaten as a separate piece. Various developments in the history of the Netherlands like industrialisation, emancipation and internationalisation, have contributed to this position. With the competition of convenience snacks, a very small percentage of the population eats the recommended amount of 200 grams per day. If seen as integral part of the meal, fruit consumption will become a more conscious and structured behaviour. Among consumers, the idea of eating fruit combined with other ingredients causes some friction. By serving meals with in a familiar place and a logical context, the consumer can familiarize himself or herself with the idea of meals that include fruit in an easily accessible way without any required preparation efforts. Caterers serve meals to a large group of consumers on a daily basis. Consumers trust the expertise of the chef and are more accepting towards meals served by food professionals. Caterers therefore have a large influence and responsibility. There are some concerns among caterers around the creation of new recipes and the right approach towards consumers. To help caterers deal with these concerns, this thesis has created the Fruitdaging challenge. The Nationaal Actieplan Groenten en Fruit will be the project owner for this challenge and act as a neutral party who can reach out to, and connect with different stakeholders. Research into consumer behaviour shows that changes to a lifestyle are triggered when several internal or external factors change simultaneously. By designing the external and triggering the internal factors, it is possible to steer towards these transition points. Eventually, intrinsic motivation must trigger the actual change in behaviour. The most effective way to get people to accept dishes with fruit is by connecting them to the culture. A series of experiments were held to create a sandwich as iconic as the “broodje gezond”. From these experiments, a system for flavour pairing was created as a tool for creating recipes. A toolbox is provided to assist caterers with the interpretation of the Fruitdaging challenge on both recipe development and consumer approach. In the toolbox are a workshop, a case study, a card game and an online platform to support and help caterers to create and serve more dishes with fruit as a main component. Four different packages suggest several activities to approach different types of visitors. The challenge and toolbox are publicly available and self-explanatory. The challenge can be adaptable to fit to the resources and corporate structure of different type of caterers, to allow all caterers to join and create a widespread effect. When meals with fruit are served more frequently, the idea of fruit as an ingredient will start to become ordinary. It is expected that the challenge will cause people to start using more fruit in their meals at home, which leads to a higher intake of fruit.