Ever wonder if you’ve had enough fruits and veggies in a day? Do you know if your child is meeting the recommended daily serving of veggies and fruit? Need cool ideas on how to sneak more servings in a day? Well, read on to learn the A, B, C’s of veggies and fruit from Campbell’s® Nutrition and Culinary Professionals.

How much is enough?
Canada’s Food Guide recommends eating 5-10 servings of vegetables and fruit per day. Keep in mind, the number of servings you need everyday depends on a number of factors such as your age, body size, activity level, and gender – just to name a few! That’s why the Food Guide suggests a lower and an upper range for each food group.

For example, a five year old child needs approximately five servings of vegetables and fruit per day, whereas, a male teenager may need closer to 10 servings a day. As a child grows or becomes more active he or she may need to increase their servings of vegetables and fruit. Here are a few easy ways to gauge a serving of vegetables or fruit: ½ cup of vegetable or fruit juice 1 medium size vegetable or fruit = 1 tennis ball ½ cup of fresh, frozen or canned vegetables or fruit = rounded handful = computer mouse 1 cup of salad = closed fist = 1 baseball Nutrition Tip! When choosing a vegetable or fruit juice, be sure to choose 100% fruit juice varieties. Did you know V8® vegetable cocktail is a source of Vitamin A and C and provides two full servings of vegetables in every 250mL glass?

Pair up colourful cut veggies with a low fat-dip as a snack for school.
Fun shaped pasta mixed with colourful veggies and their favourite dressing is a treat for the eyes and also makes a great lunch.
Take soup to go! A great way to include veggies in a lunch is to pack Campbell’s® Tomato or Vegetable soup in a small insulated container or include new Campbell’s® Soup At Hand®. Don’t forget the Goldfish® crackers for dunking!
Sliced apples sprinkled with some cinnamon are a treat.
Smoothie break! Kids will have fun picking their favourite fruits and creating new flavour
combinations.
Make a trail mix with cereal, dried fruit and Goldfish® crackers!

There’s a whole rainbow of nutritious foods for children to choose from. To meet their needs for energy and essential nutrients children’s lunch boxes should include a variety of foods from all four food groups in Canada’s Food Guide to Healthy Eating each day. Check out the Food Guide at www.healthcanada.ca/foodguide to explore healthy eating together.

Children will be more likely to enjoy their lunch if they can help plan what goes in their lunch
box. Using Canada’s Food Guide to Healthy Eating as a guide, ask them to make a list of foods they would like to eat for lunch and snacks. Make sure they include foods from each food group. Children can even draw pictures of some of their favourite foods from each food group.

Now have some fun brainstorming lunch and snack ideas together! See how many nutritious and delicious combos you can come up with. Make a list of ideas that meet criteria for both the fun kids want and the nutrition they need for healthy growth and development. With a little
imagination, the possibilities are endless. Repeat often to keep things interesting!

Brought to you by Campbell’s® Nutrition and Culinary Professionals.
www.campbellsoup.ca/en/cnci/index.asp