Veg Power’s multi-award winning campaign ‘Eat Them To Defeat Them’ run in partnership with ITV results in increased vegetable consumption over the long-term, according to the non-profit’s five-year evaluation data.

The key findings have indicated that the campaign has had a tangible impact on the long-term consumption of vegetables, with 53% of the parents involved in the schools’ programme reporting a long-term benefit in the volume consumed, as well the variety.

This year’s campaign was the result of a collaboration between ITV, Channel 4 and Sky Media, who have collectively contributed over £15m of advertising since its launch.

Created by London agency Adam&EveDDB, the latest edition ran across primetime TV and was funded by major supermarket chains such as Aldi, Coop, Dole, Lidl, Sainsbury’s, Tesco and Waitrose.

According to the 2023 highlights, 77% of parents who were aware of the programme in their kid’s school reported their child ate more vegetable directly because of the campaign.

“Every year our evaluation has shown that Eat Them To Defeat Them is effective at increasing children’s veg consumption, but this five-year evaluation confirms the effect on behaviour goes beyond that of the campaign and is long-lasting.

“By increasing vegetable consumption in children over the long-term it will have a huge impact on the quality of their diet and indicates the importance of exposing as many children as possible to it,” Veg Power chief executive, Dan Parker, said.

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“On a more personal note, I am still blown away by the passion, brilliance and dedication of so many for this campaign. The diverse alliance of hundreds of organisations and thousands of schools that is Eat Them to Defeat Them is quite extraordinary.

“My sincerest thanks to the teachers, the caterers, the experts and celebrities, our media partners and sponsors and above all to our partners at ITV and the wonderful team at Veg Power.”

The campaign looks to inspire more kids to eat their five-a-day by combining large-scale advertising with a widespread schools programme.

Since its launch in 2019, the campaign has directly led to a £132 million increase in vegetable sales, equivalent to 1.4bn in children’s veg portions.

ITV director of social purpose, Susie Braun added: “Eat Them To Defeat Them is proof that it’s possible to make long-lasting change through communication – not just to how children think about vegetables, but also to what they choose to eat. It is hugely rewarding to see ITV and Veg Power’s five year long partnership having such an impact.”