Hope for picky eaters at end of rainbow cauliflower

GETTING children to eat their greens has been an age-old problem for parents.

But new rainbow coloured cauliflowers could tip the balance in their favour in the fight for healthy food on the dinner table.

The vivid orange, emerald green, and shocking pink varieties of the humble vegetable are hoped to widen its appeal to youngsters and combat a dip in demand.

Along with traditional white varieties, they will be sold in a “rainbow pack” from today by Tesco stores in Britain.

Grown in Lincolnshire, the coloured cauliflowers are all naturally produced but have been crossed with other types of the brassica family, which includes green cabbage and broccoli, to make exciting colour variations and boost falling sales.

The move is hoped to help improve cauliflower popularity after it was overtaken by broccoli.

Tesco said statistics from retail analysts Kantar Worldpanel show in the last two years volume sales of cauliflower have fallen by 6.5% across all retailers while demand for broccoli has grown by 2.5%.

Tesco greens buyer Jeni Gray said: “These cauliflowers have a real wow factor that should really create a stir with shoppers and hopefully children at dinnertime.

“Cauliflower got its poor image from baby boomer generation schoolchildren who generally loathed them as they were always being told to eat their greens for health reasons.

“When food was rationed during and after the Second World War, cauliflower became part of the nation’s staple meat and two veg diet at school and at home.

“However, cauliflower appears to have lost out to broccoli [as] in the last few years it was being hailed as a ‘superfood’ by health and food experts.”

The rainbow cauliflowers have been grown exclusively for Tesco by one of the Britain’s largest growers of brassica, TH Clements of Benington, near Boston, Lincolnshire.

Managing director Chris Gedney said: “We have been developing our rainbow cauliflower range over a number of seasons to ensure that the offer is one that both attracts and engages customers.

“Although brightly coloured, the products are 100% natural and deliver the same great taste that is expected from cauliflower.

“The brassica industry has suffered over the past decade with the traditional products like cauliflower deemed as a little bland and untrendy.

“The introduction of the new rainbow varieties is sure to offer the industry a brighter future.”

The coloured varieties follow the arrival of pink and yellow mushrooms into the fresh produce aisles in Tesco last week.

Ms Gray added: “We know from sales that whenever we bring out innovative new produce such as pink and yellow mushrooms and black raspberries they go down well with shoppers, so we’re hoping that will be the case here.”

Cauliflower is low in calories and a source of vitamin C, as well as containing folic acid, vitamin B6 and potassium.

The cauliflower will be sold in a 320g pack with a changeable combination of different coloured varieties, costing £1.50.