Jamie Oliver: “Five a Day” Is a Lie—Let’s Shoot for Seven to Eleven!

Celebrity chef Jamie Oliver has criticised the long-standing recommendation to eat five portions of fruit and vegetables a day, describing it as misleading and inadequate.

He argues that the advice, which has shaped UK public health campaigns for decades, falls short of the intake required to achieve significant health benefits.

The current guidance, supported by the NHS and the World Health Organisation, advises individuals to consume five portions of around 80 grams each day. Oliver contends that this figure was originally set as a compromise to encourage healthier eating without overwhelming the public. He now insists that people should instead aim for between seven and eleven portions daily if they are to experience meaningful improvements to wellbeing.

His comments align with recent nutritional research indicating that a higher intake of fruit and vegetables is associated with better health outcomes. Studies suggest that consuming up to eleven portions per day can reduce the risk of chronic diseases and support long-term health more effectively than the established minimum of five.

In response to this, Oliver has developed a series of recipes designed to make achieving these higher targets both realistic and appealing. His forthcoming cookbook, Eat Yourself Healthy, provides practical meal ideas that incorporate up to eleven portions in a single day. The emphasis is on flavour, accessibility and creativity, moving away from the perception that healthy eating is restrictive or uninteresting.

The book is scheduled for release on 11 September 2025 and is intended to offer families and individuals the tools to increase their fruit and vegetable consumption without feeling burdened. Oliver hopes that by demonstrating how simple adjustments to everyday meals can deliver substantial nutritional benefits, more people will embrace a diet richer in plant-based foods.

By challenging the familiar “five a day” message, Oliver has reopened the debate on what constitutes an adequate daily intake. His intervention reflects a broader push within the health community to encourage greater consumption of fruit and vegetables as a means of tackling rising rates of diet-related illness.