Fruit and vegetable consumption during the COVID-19 lockdown in Sri Lanka: an online survey

Sooriyaarachchi, Piumika; Francis, Tormalli V.; Jayawardena, Ranil

doi:10.1186/s41110-022-00161-z

Cited by 11 publications

(12 citation statements)

References 46 publications

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“…Fruit consumption has decreased since the COVID-19 pandemic. This finding is consistent with previous studies showing a reduction in fruit consumption [ 23 , 24 ]. A previous study reported that this decreasing trend is higher among food-insecure individuals than food-secure individuals [ 25 ].…”

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 94%

Changes in Food Consumption Trends among American Adults since the COVID-19 Pandemic

et al. 2023

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The quality and quantity of food consumption have changed due to the COVID-19 pandemic. In this study, we examined how the COVID-19 pandemic has changed the consumption of different food groups in order to close the research gap by providing current evidence that reflects a later stage of the pandemic compared to other circulating research conducted at earlier stages. Data collection for this cross-sectional study was performed via an online Qualtrics survey from 10,050 adults aged 40–100 years. Nutritional status was measured using the 24-item short-form Dietary Screening Tool (DST) twice: before and since the COVID-19 pandemic. The DST questions were categorized based on MyPlate items, along with fat, sugar, and sweet items, as well as nutritional supplement intake. In addition, the total DST score was calculated for each participant, which categorized them into one of three groups: “at risk”, “possible risk”, and “not at risk”. The results revealed that the consumption of grains, fruit, lean protein, and dairy decreased significantly, while the consumption of fat, sugar, and sweet items increased significantly due to COVID-19. The biggest decreases in consumption of food subcategories were related to whole grain bread and cereal, followed by fruit as a snack, in comparison with other types of grain and fruit. No changes in the consumption of vegetables, processed meat, or supplement intake were seen. The total DST score showed that, before and since COVID-19, the overall nutrition status of adult Americans has been at risk. In addition, of those participants who were not at risk before COVID-19, 28.5% were either at risk or at possible risk since COVID-19; moreover, of those participants who were at possible risk before COVID-19, 21% were at risk since COVID-19. As a good nutritional status can reduce the risk of severe illness or even mortality rate in times of crisis, the findings of this study can help policymakers and health educators to develop heath-protecting behavior sessions against future pandemics to manage crises.

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Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 94%

Changes in Food Consumption Trends among American Adults since the COVID-19 Pandemic

et al. 2023

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“…However, the per capita expenditure on fresh fruit and vegetables in the fourth quarter of 2020 grew less than the per capita expenditure on other food products. Our results are also consistent with studies conducted by Sooriyaarachchi et al. (2022) whose findings show that the consumption of locally produced fruit and vegetables during the pandemic period has increased considerably.…”

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 93%

“…The paper contributes to the recent literature about changes in consumption habits due to COVID-19 (e.g. Ammann et al ., 2022; Dumitras et al ., 2021; Güney and Sangün, 2021; Sooriyaarachchi et al ., 2022). In particular, the findings show the long-term effects of the pandemic on consumers' behavior and consumption of fruit and vegetables.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Can an apple a day keep COVID-19 away? A cluster analysis of the long-term COVID-19 pandemic’s impact on the consumption of apples in Italy

Giannetto,

De Pascale,

Di Vita

et al. 2024

BFJ

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PurposeApples have always been considered a healthy product able to provide curative properties to consumers. In Italy, there is a long tradition of apple consumption and production both as a fresh product and as processed food. However, as with many other products, the consumption of fruits and vegetables and, more specifically apples, has been drastically affected by the first lockdown in 2020. In this project, the authors investigate whether the change in consumption habits had long-lasting consequences beyond 2020 and what are the main eating motivations, food-related behavior and socio-demographic affecting the consumption of fruits and vegetables after the pandemic.Design/methodology/approachThe authors ran two online surveys with 1,000 Italian consumers across a year (from October 2021 to December 2022). In the study, participants answered questions about their consumption habits and their eating motives. Out of 1,000 consumers, the authors included in the final analysis only the participants who answered both surveys, leaving a final sample of 651 consumers.FindingsThe results show that participants have allocated more budget to fruit and vegetables after the lockdown than before it. Moreover, consumers reported an average increase in the consumption of apples. However, the increase was more pronounced for people aged between 30 and 50 years old and identified as female. After showing the difference across time, a cluster analysis identified three main segments that differ in their eating motives, place of purchase and area of residence.Practical implicationsOverall, the results contribute to a better understanding of how the global pandemic is still affecting people's daily life. Moreover, the findings can be used to guide the marketing and communication strategies of companies in the food sector.Originality/valueTo the best of the authors' knowledge, this is the first study that investigates changes in the consumption of fruits and vegetables, and, more specifically, apples, in Italy more than one year after the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic. Moreover, the study proposes a classification of consumers based on their habits in a time frame during which the COVID-19 wave was at its bottom which is not currently present in the literature.

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“…This study was conducted in Sri Lanka as a part of a nationallevel cross-sectional online survey that aimed to investigate the immediate impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on lifestylerelated behaviors. A detailed description of the study population, methods, and the impact on other lifestyle patterns have been published elsewhere [13][14][15]. Data were collected through a self-administered questionnaire accessible through the Google Forms web survey platform.…”

Section: Study Population and Samplementioning

confidence: 99%

“…The research was performed in accordance with the principles of the Declaration of Helsinki. The authors declared that the protocol of this article was part of a previously published [12][13][14] large initiative in Sri Lanka (2021-2022). Moreover, web-based informed consent was obtained from each participant after explaining the study objectives and the guarantee of secrecy.…”

Section: Fundingmentioning

confidence: 99%

Impact of COVID-19 lockdown on meat or equivalent consumption behavior among Sri Lankan adults: a cross-sectional study

et al. 2022

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Background: The COVID-19 lockdown severely affected dietary behaviors, particularly meat or equivalent consumption. This study aimed to understand the impact of COVID-19 confinement on meat or equivalent consumption pattern among Sri Lankans. Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted from 27th May to 2nd June 2021 as a national-level online survey in Sri Lanka using a self-administered questionnaire developed as Google forms. The questionnaire consisted of questions related to socio-demographics and dietary behaviors. Descriptive, univariate, and multinomial logistic regression was performed. The statistical significance is considered at less than 0.05. Results: A total of 3600 respondents were included, with the majority being women (60.1%). A higher proportion of the participants increased their consumption of eggs (53.7%), dhal (47.0%), and dry fish and sprats (36.3%). A big trend was observed in cutting down the fish (41.1%) and other seafood (52.0%) consumption. Nearly half of the respondents did not change their consumption of meat other than chicken (54.5%), pulses (52.6%), soya meat (52.1%), dry fish and sprats (48.9%), canned fish (47.6%), sausages and meatballs (45.1%), and chicken (43.7%). The males (odds ratio (OR) 0.852; 95% CI: 0.738 to 0.984, P = 0.029) and Tamil (OR = 1.605, 95% CI: 1.150 to 2.239, P = 0.005) showed a significant likelihood to increase egg consumption. Respondents with a lower income <25,000 LKR (OR 2.220; 95% CI 1.672-2.947, P = 0.000) were more than twice likely to report increased dhal consumption. The same income group (< 25,000 LKR) (OR = 2.752; 95% CI: 2.024-3.741, P = 0.000) reported more than twice reduction in fish consumption. Respondents in municipal area (OR = 1.523; 95% CI: 1.186 to 3.292, P = 0.009) showed a significantly higher likelihood to reduction in other seafood consumption. Conclusion: An overall change in meat or equivalent consumption behavior among Sri Lankan adults was evidenced. Furthermore, nutrition recommendations should be revised to avoid future long-term consequences. Fish and other seafood intake declined, while consumption of eggs, dhal, dry fish, and sprats increased.

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Fruit and vegetable consumption during the COVID-19 lockdown in Sri Lanka: an online survey

Cited by 11 publications

References 46 publications

Changes in Food Consumption Trends among American Adults since the COVID-19 Pandemic

Changes in Food Consumption Trends among American Adults since the COVID-19 Pandemic

Can an apple a day keep COVID-19 away? A cluster analysis of the long-term COVID-19 pandemic’s impact on the consumption of apples in Italy

Impact of COVID-19 lockdown on meat or equivalent consumption behavior among Sri Lankan adults: a cross-sectional study

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