Spain ditches junk food: Nearly half cut down and switch to low-fat and organic in last year

The WIN World Survey is based upon self-report from the year 2019, and Spain's figures were contributed by market research firm DYM Institute.

An average of 44% say they consume far less fast food, processed food and sugary food than they did in 2018 – although a small percentage admitted they ate more of these.

Ready meals and processed food consumption went down in 42% of cases, cakes and sweets in 46%, and fast food in 44% - however, 8% said they ate more cakes and sweets and 10% said they bought more fast food.

Meanwhile, a similar percentage to the first set of figures said they ate more low-sugar, low-fat and organic foodstuffs.

Different age groups were studied, and it was found that in the over-65s, only between 1% and 3% bought more fast food, ready meals and high-sugar produce, whilst those who had significantly cut down their consumption of these accounted for between 46% and 54%.

Those who had least reduced less-nutritious choices were – perhaps surprisingly – the 18-34 age group, the ones who, in other research, have been found more likely to opt for a vegan, vegetarian or pescatarian diet.

In keeping with that, it was the younger adults who were found to have most increased their purchases or consumption of healthier types of food, such as fresh produce and organic goods – between 21% and 32% - whilst among those over 65, only 18% said they had moved more towards the more typically 'recommended' products.

Spanish residents' diet 'slightly healthier than the world average'

Spain has long been famed for its 'Mediterranean diet', which has been proven to extend long-term health and contribute towards a longer life – fresh fruit, vegetables and salads, grilled oily fish, nuts and seeds, and olive oil – although in recent years, the trend had appeared to be declining and obesity and diet-related health conditions on the rise; in fact, in 2013, as many as 40% of children and 60% of adults were above the recommended weight for their height or body-mass index, if not actually clinically obese.

However, the year leading up to the dawn of the 2020s seemed to bring an about-turn: According to the WIN World Survey, residents in Spain eat slightly healthier than the global average.

The same research was carried out in 40 countries in every inhabited continent, and it was found that between 12% and 14% of the planet's population overall consume more fast food, processed food and sugary produce than a year ago, whilst between 37% and 41% have cut down on all three.

Spain is said to be similar in its figures to the European average for reduction in intake of less-advisable foodstuffs, and worldwide, there were no great differences seen between males and females.

No huge disparities were seen by professional status, either: Other than pensioners, who most tended to cut down on unhealthy food (44% to 56% on average internationally) and least likely to increase their consumption of these (between 4% and 5% globally), and leaving aside students, who were least likely to reduce their intake of 'junk food' (29% to 34% worldwide) and most likely to increase it (17% to 26%), the figures were similar across the board for those who worked full-time, part-time, as housewives or house-husbands or full-time parents or carers, or were unemployed.

Sizeable differences were seen across age groups in the other 39 countries, which followed much the same pattern as in Spain.

Europe was where fewer people had upped their junk food intake (7% to 8%) and the American continent was where the most people had decreased the quantity of these in their diets.

The highest rises in fast food, processed food and sugary food consumption in the year 2018 to 2019 were seen in the Africa and Asia-Pacific areas – between 20% and 25% - with only between a quarter and a third having cut down on less-recommended produce.

The Middle East and North Africa ('MENA') zone was somewhere between the Americas and the Africa and Asia-Pacific zones – between 15% and 18% of residents now ate more 'unhealthy' food than they had a year previously.

Globally, a total of 29,575 people answered the questionnaire – in Spain, the DYM Institute conducted 1,017 surveys online during the month of November 2019.

It is not clear whether candidates were pre-selected from a stratified sample, or microcosm of the world's population, to ensure they were representative of society as a whole – otherwise, some bias may be involved, especially due to the 'desirability effect' of respondents giving the answers they 'thought the researchers wanted to hear'.

Also, as the study was entirely on a self-report basis, it may not be scientific, since respondents' perception of their diets may be different from reality.

But the overall trend seems to show that residents in Europe, and Spain in particular, are becoming more conscious of what they eat.

The dramatic rise in profile of the climate change crisis could be partially responsible for this, with greater awareness leading to more careful choices: Organic produce, grown or manufactured locally, and more consideration about animal welfare in the food chain and sustainable use of land.