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British kids outsmart their elders on nutrition

12-Jul-2024 - Last updated on 12-Jul-2024 at 08:37 GMT

The Little Shot Shop kicked off the Plenish campaign, with the London pop-up on Portobello Road staffed exclusively by kids. Credit: Plenish

A nationwide poll of more than 2,000 adults and 1,000 children has revealed a major knowledge gap when it comes to nutrition - with one UK drinks brand ready to plug the gap.

The research, which was conducted by drinks brand Plenish, revealed that one in five (20%) of British school children (aged 6-16) were able to correctly identify that there are 13 essential vitamins, compared to just 5% of adults.

Moreover, just 12% of adults surveyed believe they consume their essential vitamins daily, with 22% not knowing a good source of vitamins and 13% deeming that ‘too much’ meal prep is needed.

The research comes at the same time as Plenish rolls out its biggest campaign to date across its shots portfolio – which, according to data from Nielsen IQ, is the UK’s fastest growing brand in its category.

Plenish now makes up 19% of the UK’s Juice Shots category MAT, currently valued at £5.71m.

“The research revealed some shocking results on nutritional and vitamin knowledge in adults versus children,” said Russell Goldman, managing director at Plenish. “The purpose of our campaign is to highlight this gap and drive awareness of the importance and ease of getting the correct vitamin intake and consumption of fruit and vegetables each day, particularly via our Plenish range.”

The shots range highlighted in its new campaign, which kicked off in June via a London pop-up, contains cold-pressed, plant-based ingredients that offer ‘functional benefits’, with no added sugar, preservatives or flavourings.

While the campaign will include a range of online PR activity via Instagram and TikTok, it will also be focused on Tesco Express' latest meal deal offering, with the brand receiving confirmation that its ‘Ginger Immunity’ and ‘Berry Gut Health’ products will be going live across 1,500 of its stores.

The company has also teamed up with Forest Bike Rides, with the Forest app indicating the rider’s nearest Tesco store selling Plenish shots in London.

“The retailer now offers the full range of Plenish shots’ flavours and benefits, supported by in-store activity to help drive sales, such as our new chilled functional bay display,” added Goldman.

The Plenish range of juices and shots is also available at Sainsbury's, Asda, Co-op, Ocado, as well as through wholesale.

In other news, Food Manufacture reports on the highlights of a recent Bidfood event that sparked plenty of ideas on how to be more sustainable. Read about it here.