To assess consumer understanding of fruit and vegetable serving sizes.

The Western Australian Health Department launched the Go for 2&5® campaign to promote fruit and vegetables in March 2002. The Health & Wellbeing Surveillance System surveyed 1108 adults, aged 16 years and over, between September and November 2002 about what constituted a serving of fruit and of vegetables, their usual daily fruit and vegetables intake, and their recall of the campaign.

The study was undertaken as a part of a public health intervention – social marketing campaign in Western Australia, which had a population of 1 927 000 in 2002.

Forty-two per cent of respondents knew that the fruit serving size was one piece and only 14·5 % reported the ½ cup vegetable serving size. The mean fruit intake was 1·8 (95 % CI 1·7, 1·8) servings/d and the mean vegetable intake was 2·8 (95 % CI 2·7, 3·0) servings/d. Vegetable intake was associated with being female (P = 0·006), increasing age (P < 0·0001), awareness of the campaign (P = 0·031) and knowledge of standard serving size (P = 0·006). Fruit consumption was associated with being female (P = 0·007). Fruit and vegetable intakes were not associated with educational attainment or household income.

The Go for 2&5® campaign uses a prescriptive message to promote increased consumption of fruit and vegetables. Respondent’s knowledge of the standard of serving sizes for fruit and vegetables suggests there is value in separating fruit and vegetable recommendations in messages to encourage increased consumption.

The Western Australian Health Department’s Go for 2&5® campaign aimed to increase adults’ awareness of the need to eat more fruit and vegetables and encourage increased consumption of one serving over five years.

The multi-strategy fruit and vegetable social marketing campaign, conducted from 2002 to 2005, included mass media advertising (television, radio, press and point-of-sale), public relations events, publications, a website (www.gofor2and5.com), and school and community activities. Campaign development and the evaluation framework were designed using health promotion theory, and assessed values, beliefs, knowledge and behaviour. Two independent telephone surveys evaluated the campaign: the Campaign Tracking Survey interviewed 5032 adults monitoring fruit and vegetable attitudes, beliefs and consumption prior to, during and 12 months after the campaign; and the Health & Wellbeing Surveillance System surveyed 17 993 adults between 2001 and 2006, continuously monitoring consumption.

Population public health intervention–social marketing campaign in Western Australia, population of 2 010 113 in 2005.

Adults in the Perth metropolitan area.

The campaign reached the target audience, increasing awareness of the recommended servings of fruit and vegetables. There was a population net increase of 0.8 in the mean number of servings of fruit and vegetables per day over three years (0.2 for fruit (1.6 in 2002 to 1.8 in 2005) and 0.6 for vegetables (2.6 in 2002 to 3.2 in 2005), significant at P < 0.05).

Sustained, well-executed social marketing is effective in improving nutrition knowledge, attitudes and consumption behaviour. The Go for 2&5® campaign provides guidance to future nutrition promotion through social marketing.