Less red meat, more vegetables in new Dutch nutrition recommendations

The Dutch Nutrition Center presented new nutrition recommendations on Tuesday, the first completely new recommendations since 2004. The Center advises more vegetables and less meat, ANP reports. The new dietary advice also calls for more variety. The group of fruit and vegetables was expanded. New to the list are nuts, legumes, yogurt, eggs and coffee. The recommended amount of daily vegetables was increased from 200 grams to 250 grams, and daily intake of meat was decreased. The model now has five groups:

1. Fruit and vegetables
2. Spreads and cooking fats
3. Fish, legumes, meat, eggs, dairy and nuts
4. Bread, cereals and potatoes
5. Beverages

People should make sure not to eat too many products that fall outside those five categories, specifically processed products which generally contains a lot of sugar, salt or saturated fat. Candy, snacks, biscuits, sauces, meats, juices and sweet spreads may be eaten, but not too often. The advice is in line with the Health Council's guidelines.