The Department of Health urges us to eat “5 portions of fruit and vegetables a day”. And that perhaps should even be 9 a day! But what exactly is a portion? It’s rarely documented, but in fact a portion is 80 grams.
Here is a table to help you. Fresh, dried, frozen or canned in juice are all equivalent. Note that potatoes don’t count! And eating more of the same fruit or vegetable doesn’t substitute for variety.
| Fruits | 80g equivalent | |
| Apple | 1 fresh or 4 dried rings | |
| Apricots – fresh/dried | 3 | |
| Avocado | Half | |
| Banana, pear, peach | 1 medium | |
| Blackberries, grapes, gooseberries | 1 handful | |
| Blueberries, blackcurrants, raspberries | 2 handfuls | |
| Cherries | 14 | |
| Currants, raisins, sultanas | 1 tablespoon | |
| Dates, prunes | 3 | |
| Figs, plums | 2 | |
| Fruit juice | 150ml/qtr pint | |
| Grapefruit | 1 | |
| Orange, satsuma etc | 1 large/2 satsuma | |
| Rhubarb | 2 tablespoons | |
| Strawberries | 8 | |
| Fruit salad | 3 tablespoons | |
| Mixed dried fruit | 1 tablespoon | |
| Tomato | 1 med/7 cherry |
| Vegetables | 80g equivalent | |
| Asparagus | 6 Spears | |
| Aubergine | One third | |
| Beans – broad, butter, French, runner | 3 heaped tablespoons | |
| Beetroot | 3 baby/7 slices | |
| Broccoli | 2 florets | |
| Carrots | 3 heaped tablespoons | |
| Cabbage | 2 handfuls sliced | |
| Brussels sprouts | 8 | |
| Cauliflower | 8 florets | |
| Celery | 3 sticks | |
| Courgettes | Half a large | |
| Curly kale, spring greens, mushrooms | 4 heaped tablespoons | |
| Onion | 1 medium | |
| Peas, sweetcorn, lentils | 3 heaped tablespoons | |
| Sweet Peppers | Half | |
| Spinach | 2 heaped tablespoons | |
| Green salad | 1 dessert bowl |