The good news is there are some simple ways to get kids eating more vegetables and parents will reap the rewards in terms of flow on benefits.

Public health nutritionist Dr Rosemary Stanton from Kangaroo Valley said a proven way to get children more engaged with the greens on their plate was to get them involved in actually growing them.

“One of the best ways to get children to eat vegetables is for them to have access to a garden, at home, school or a community garden,” she said.

Shoalhaven Heads Public School is one of a number of local primary schools whose students have access to a vegetable garden, as well as composting and poultry projects.

Principal Ian Henderson said the school’s garden had been in operation around three years and was a community project which involved all students at the school.

The produce grown by students is sold at market days or in the school canteen, with kids able to learn about the whole process from start to finish.

“The idea is they can take the vegetables home and eat fresh,” Mr Henderson said. “They learn all the names of things and how they grow.”

Year 6 student Tyesha Cox has been involved with the garden for two years and said she appreciated carrots in particular a lot more now.

“It’s like you want to eat it more because you made it, you planted it,” she said.

The flow on effects of children eating more vegetables are positive and wide-ranging.

The likelihood of a family sitting around the dinner table increases – while the propensity for disagreements decreases.

“One reason families don’t eat together is because there are arguments – it is too stressful to makes kids eat vegetables,” Dr Stanton said.

“Studies have shown when children eat vegetables and are involved in a school, home or community garden, family harmony has increased.”

Eating peacefully around the dinner table also helps young children better develop speech and older children are less prone to trouble at school and in the community.

“It’s because when you get together, you discuss the day’s joys and sorrows,” Dr Stanton said.

It’s not as hard as you might think to incorporate five serves of vegetables a day.

“The serves are small,” Dr Stanton said. “It’s half a cup of anything cooked … or one cup of raw vegetables, like salad.”

It is also important to eat a range of different coloured vegetables, Dr Stanton said.

“When people eat different colours, they are getting a balance of vitamins and antioxidants. Try to eat a rainbow. The other thing is that vegetables don’t need to be cooked. There is nothing wrong with raw vegetables and some children prefer it.”

It’s not just children who need to eat more herbage, most adults fall short of the mark too. 

Just 7 per cent of Australians eat the recommended five serves a day of vegetables, Dr Stanton said.

This isn’t because people don’t like vegetables or refuse to eat them, but rather because of the way Australians now consume their food.

“People tend to only eat vegetables when they are sitting at a table,” Dr Stanton said. “People often eat on the run, grabbing fast food. It’s not that they are saying they won’t eat vegetables, but … it’s just not part of their diet.”

Dr Stanton said a campaign like Nutrition Australia’s Try For 5, designed to encourage Australians to eat five serves of vegetables each day for just a week, was part of increasing awareness.

The campaign was launched as part of National Nutrition Week (October 12-18).

“People will realise it’s not that hard to do,” she said.

“The aim is to get people to make a small change in their habits, and see it’s something they can do. People just aren’t aware they are not eating vegetables.”