30 different plants a week

[FurForksSake]

Is anyone doing this? I’ll try and find a link that explains it….https://zoe.com/learn/30-plants-per-week?srsltid=AfmBOooWb_hMM8qGzv1IGCYS6Qr1bLGaoEpoMo_mpMvzacNt14Rdx2Uq apologies they are probably trying to sell something, but jt at least explains.

DH and I and the kids almost certainly don’t manage 30 a week, a lot of that is to do with budget and wastage. Fruit in particular is expensive and in fairly big packs. Grapes, bananas, apples, a bag of frozen berries is our standard. Vegetables, salad, tomatoes, peppers, onions, carrots, peas, sweetcorn, broccoli, parsnips are probably the limit. I buy granary bread which is seeded, so that counts for something.

is it just changing my mindset and getting a bigger variety and accepting the higher cost? I see Zoe sell a product; I wouldn’t buy something like that as we just wouldn’t consume it.

I know sod all about human nutrition but a bit more about botany. I would hazard a guess that the '30 different plants' thing is so you can incorporate a huge variety of vitamins, minerals and trace elements in your diet. Some of which you only need in minute quantities.

That pinch of oregano on your pizza is going to give you over 60 different chemical compounds.

I don't have the greatest variety in my diet- ex arfid and with massive sensory issues around food, but I was surprised by how well I did on this as I use a lot of herbs/spices/nuts/seeds, plus different colours help meet the target. Even with seasoning just being a part portion they do add up. I found it gave me a nudge towards including more plants in my diet, even if the core ones doing the heavy lifting on nutrition remained tomatoes, onion, garlic, carrots, peppers, raspberries and strawberries.

We counted 30 different ones in a single meal once - for Christmas Day dinner last year. Herbs and spices count, as do nuts -each type of nut is separate. We’re vegan, so probably eat more plants than most.

Keep a diary for a month of what you do eat, and then just try to increase it.

So if you eat apples, vary the variety. If you eat peppers, make sure to vary the colour. Add different flour to your baking. Add in some varied dried fruit here and there.

Thirty is just a suggested number, and the variety across a whole year also matters.

Don't forget pulses - wide range.

It isn't about 'vegetables' it is about plants.

@Toomanywaterbottlesthat is impressive! I’m sure your gut biome is absolutely top notch.

Good point! In my head it’s closely linked to five fruit and veg a day; but of course it js plants. That does make it easier to think about.

Good point! In my head it’s closely linked to five fruit and veg a day; but of course it js plants. That does make it easier to think about.

It’s not nonsense, but nor is it supposed to replace your ‘five a day’. The benefits come from introducing a wide variety of stuff to your gut. It makes for a healthier biome, with a much wider range of good bacteria.

Even very small amounts are enough to help with bacterial diversity. They aren’t suggesting that you replace proper portions of vegetables with a tiny sprinkling of parsley.

Even things like tea and coffee count, as does chocolate! Seeds and legumes can really bump it up. A handful of mixed nuts could be five in one hit. I usually reach 30 in two days, and don’t bother counting for the rest of the week. Since I’ve been doing 30 plants I’ve noticed a huge improvement in my ulcerative colitis.

Sadly I don’t drink tea or coffee 😆

I usually avoid granola because it’s just broken up flapjacks and full of sugar in my mind, but I’ve found some lower sugar ones which have a good range of nuts and bits, that’s an easy thing to add to my GY along with frozen mixed berries and gives a good bang.

I’m also really conscious of how poor my fibre intake is, and trying to get the 30 plants in would very much help this.

Just coming on to say that we've been doign this for a few years actually. I think as others have pointed out, it's important to remember this is about the gut biome and variety. And I'll tell you one huge benefit for us - the post-toilet-smell is a LOT better!!!

A few tips I've worked in:

All salads always have extra in them - I buy mixed bags of leaves. That can be pricey so I might buy one iceberg lettuce and then a mixed bag rather than two different mixed bags. I also make a big effort to add something extra to salads - seeds/nuts, avocado, spring onion etc. I always buy peppers in bags of three - mixed colours - so that's good too.

Similarly, I often buy a single bowl of mixed stir fry veg, using veg that I don't usually buy, and then add my usual veg to it when making stir fry.

Lentils are a great way option to add to stews/curries/sauces. Chickpeas and beans too if you have less fussy eaters (red lentils just disappear, so that works well).

Smoothies using frozen fruit are brilliant as a bag of mixed berries can be 3 or 4. I also always have flaxseeds in the house which I add to smoothies, and I always add fresh apple, banana and also oats.

I make homemade granola weekly now. That gives us a wide range of nuts and seeds, alongside the obvious oats.

Think about variety in types of food - by choosing to cook Asian one day, mexican the next, European the day after, you're upping your range of herbs and spices, even if they're just dried. I routinely use around 10 different types of dried herbs or spices every week, as well as fresh ginger, garlic, chilli routinely.

I also usually buy one "extra" fruit a week. So a watermelon one week, or bag of peaches another etc.

Super helpful! Thank you!

I’ve made a giant batch of chilli today (6 meals for 3-4 gone into the freezer) which my husband commented on how many types of bean go in, black, kidney, haricot and black eye, the kids do not notice at all. I should have shoved some lentils in!

I also made quiche today and consciously roasted red, yellow and orange baby peppers, two colours of onions, two colours of courgette (and an aubergine) to increase the variety.

i am definitely thinking more about variety, I tend to buy a pack of three red peppers, but will now buy the mixed bag.

Herbs, seeds, nuts and grains all count.

I’ve just totted up my food for today:

Brunch:
Overnight ‘oats’: mixed grain muesli base = 4 different grains; blueberries; pomegranate; mixed seeds = 4 different seeds (sesame, pumpkin, sunflower, linseed); pistachios; mixed superberries (raisins, cranberries, blueberries, goji berries) = 4. Total = 14 (two lots of blueberries in there)

snack:
Yoghurt with chia seeds and raspberries = 2

Supper:
Salad: mixed leaves (spinach, lollo rosso, rocket); cress; edamame beans; chopped carrot; cucumber; baby plum tomatoes; radishes; avocado; toasted walnuts; tahini, olive oil & lemon juice dressing. Total = 13 (tahini is sesame seeds, and I counted those into brunch)
Dessert: Strawberries with orange juice = 2

total for the day = 31 different plants.

(But I don’t have that many every day - usually more like 15 a day.)

You're missing the point though. It is about variety not quantity. Different varieties of fruit or veg will have different nutritional make up. It might be very minor differences but ut is about building variety into the diet. To be honest thiugh not many people are going to have 5 different varieties of apples a week so that point is a bit moot. It is a complete seperate thing to the 5 a day message.
The idea is that by having 40 different plant based foods a week you are getting more variety.

DH has just given me some fruit shortcake biscuits with a cup of tea. Do the raisins count?

yes, I believe they do and the flour that the biscuits are made from probably 😆

And the tea leaves….

Well yes, they are a plant. The tea also counts

OP, on fruit, would tinned fruit help in terms of cost/waste issues. I eat quite a lot of tinned fruit (in juice not syrup), including prunes, grapefruit, mandarin, apricots, pears and pineapple. I do also eat fresh fruit but tinned helps to give variety while reducing waste.

And the flour in the shortcake also counts. Anything that came from a plant.

I think I definitely need to explore more tinned fruit, I only buy pineapple which I tend to have with cottage cheese.

I’ve done two meals today and already had 17. Can’t imagine it will be difficult.

@FurForksSakeJack Monroe had a recipe for tinned peach crumble which works quite well.