title: Do processed vegetables reduce the socio-economic differences in vegetable purchases? A study in France.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Vegetable consumption varies highly across households, based on household structure and socio-economic status, but little is known about the share of fresh vs. processed (e.g. frozen or canned) vegetables. Our aim was to compare the social and economic determinants of fresh and processed vegetable consumption.
  
  
  METHODS
  We reviewed detailed data on vegetable purchases for at-home consumption of 2600 French households during 2007. We took into account a wide range of processed vegetables (excluding potatoes) and made a distinction between fresh vegetables, processed vegetables and baby food containing vegetables. We conducted regression analyses to predict consumption of fresh and processed vegetables in kilograms per year and unit values in euros per kilogram.
  
  
  RESULTS
  About 60% of the vegetables bought by the sample households were fresh. Fresh vegetable consumption increased with the respondent's income, age and educational level, and with the number of adults but not with the presence of children aged <6 years. The quantity of processed vegetables purchased increased with the household size but was not dependent on age, education or household income, although the richest households spent more per kilogram on processed vegetables. Households with a child aged <6 years also purchased 10 kg of baby foods containing vegetables.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  We found socio-economic inequalities in the quantities of fresh vegetables, in the spending on fresh and processed vegetables but not in the quantities of processed vegetables. This suggests that monitoring the price and nutritional quality of processed vegetables and providing this information to consumers could help them identify nutritious, affordable and convenient foods.
authors.affiliation: INRA UR1303 ALISS, Paris, France.
authors.forename: Marie
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Plessz
authors.forename: Séverine
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Gojard
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000367:Age Factors; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D004032:Diet / Q000191:economics* / Q000592:standards*; D004522:Educational Status; D005191:Family Characteristics; D005260:Female; D057141:Food, Preserved / Q000191:economics*; D005602:France; D006801:Humans; D007182:Income; D007223:Infant; D007231:Infant, Newborn; D008297:Male; D011203:Poverty; D012044:Regression Analysis; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D012959:Socioeconomic Factors; D014675:Vegetables / Q000145:classification / Q000191:economics*; D055815:Young Adult