States That Eat the Most Fruits and Vegetables

Although some picky eaters despise fruits and vegetables, most Americans enjoy at least one of the two, if not both. I mean, what's more refreshing and delicious than a slice of watermelon or grilled veggies during the summer? Fruits and vegetables offer many nutritional benefits, and you can combine them with any meal throughout the day to add some extra nutrients. 

At Ensō Superfoods, we take pride in helping people reach their nutritional goals, and we couldn't help but wonder how Americans' fruit and vegetable intake varies across the country. We've compiled the nation's fruit & vegetable consumption statistics to understand America's love (or lack thereof) of fruits and vegetables, and the results may surprise you!

Interesting Findings

• Residents in Vermont eat more fruit and vegetables than anyone else in America. 
• On the other hand, Louisiana ranks as the lowest fruit and vegetable-consuming state. 
• The top five fruit and vegetable-consuming states–Vermont, Massachusetts, Maine, New Hampshire, and the District of Columbia–are all located along the East Coast. 
• New York ranks 4th in the country for fruit consumption but 28th for vegetable consumption–enforcing the nickname "The Big Apple." 
• Despite being known for its peaches, Georgia only ranks 34th for fruit consumption but 14th for vegetables. 

Methodology

We analyzed CDC data sets for fruit and vegetable consumption among adults. We ranked each data set, number one being the states that consume the most fruits or vegetables, then combined the rankings to get an average ranking. We then gave a final ranking based on the average overall ranking. New Jersey did not have data available across any of the data sets, so we did not include it in the report.

The data sets we analyzed are:

• CDC: The Percentage of Adults Report Consuming Fruit Less That One Time Daily
• CDC: The Percentage of Adults Report Consuming Vegetables Less That One Time Daily