Information on Loughborough

Loughboroughs Food Landscape

Posted on 29/02/2008
P. Klein

fresh fruit and vegWe all know that we should eat those 5 portions of fruit and veg each day. However as a country we are not doing to well on this front with only 28% of the population nationally hitting this target and the amount of obese people having trebled in the last 20 years. The question is how we are doing in Loughborough and what are the reasons behind this.

Research published yesterday (28th February 2008) by Leicestershire County Council has been looking at this - the food landscape of Loughborough.

The first finding is that to the southern part of Loughborough (Nanpantan, Woodthorpe, Shelthorpe South) there is a distinct lack of shops selling at least 10 varieties of fruit and veg within most peoples walking distance. It seems that many shops concentrate significant shelf space to alcohol and snacks, and the quality and freshness of the fruit and veg they do stock is not great.

The government has identified that a 500 m walk to a shop is not unreasonable. However using this distance almost 20% of the population of Loughborough are ‘a problem distance’.

The average Loughborough person spends £5.10 on fruit and veg a week, with people in the Shelthorpe and Garendon areas spending the least.

The purpose of this research will be used to help understand the local issues and barriers to healthy eating and there will also be focus groups in the Spring. Armed with this information decisions on what to do can be made.