Food Groupings

All food items in the FFQ were categorised into 56 food groups based on similar nutritional composition and characteristics (table 3.3). Consideration was also given to those foods which are typically consumed together (e.g. crumbed and deep fried) and other individual foods and beverages which are typically or commonly consumed. Individual foods that solely create a food group had to be consumed by at least 10% of the study population. The amount of food groups created were based on the recommendation by Kass & Tinsley (1979) to allocate 5-10 participants per food grouping.

77 Table 3.3 Food groups

Food Group Food items included Justification

Full fat milk Full fat milk (dark blue top) High fat content compared to other milks Low fat milk Lite milk (light blue top), trim milk (green top) Often chosen on low fat properties Sweetened milk

products

Breakfast drinks, flavoured milk, evaporated milk, hot chocolate

Sugar added

Yoghurt Yoghurt (plain, fruity, Greek, unsweetened) Separate group to other dairy products High fat cheese Cheddar, processed cheese, cream cheese, blue

vein

High fat content

Low fat cheese Edam, cottage cheese, brie, camembert, feta Lower fat content

Apple, banana, orange Apple, banana, orange Common fruit available all year round in NZ

Other fruit Fresh, canned, frozen, dried Seasonal fruits

Tomatoes Tomatoes Good source of lycopene, eaten by >10%

of people so can be a group on its own

Dark-yellow vegetables Carrots, pumpkin Good source of vitamin C

Green vegetables Lettuce, spinach, cabbage, broccoli, watercress, green beans, sprouts, courgette

Good source of B vitamins

Other non-starchy vegetables

Capsicum, onion, mushrooms, frozen mixed vegetables, beetroot

Other non-starchy vegetables

Potatoes (excluding chips and crisps)

Potato (boiled, mashed, baked, stuffed, scalloped)

Commonly eaten starchy vegetable, eaten by >10% of people so can be a group on its own

Starchy vegetables Kumara, yam, parsnip, turnip, swedes (boiled, mashed, baked)

Taro (flesh, roots, stalks), green banana, sweet corn kernels

Other starchy vegetables

White breads White bread, wraps, fruit bread, focaccia, bagel, pita, paraoa bread, rewena bread, doughboys

Refined and processed staple bread products, low fibre

Discretionary breads Crumpets, scone, savoury muffin, croissant, pancakes/waffles, iced bun

Refined and processed discretionary items, low fibre

Crackers Cream, cruskit, corn, rice, vitawheat Different nutrient composition to bread and grains

Whole grain breads Bread (high fibre, wholemeal, wholegrain) High fibre Refined grains White rice, pasta (penne, spaghetti, vermicelli),

noodles (instant, egg, rice), canned spaghetti

White refined carbohydrates

Wholegrains Brown rice, quinoa, couscous, bulgur wheat Wholegrains, high fibre Oats Porridge, rolled oats, oat bran, oat meal High fibre, no added sugar Sweetened cereals Milo cereal, coco pops, nutrigrain, honey puffs,

fruit loops, special K, light and tasty, sultana bran

Added sugar, highly processed

78

Food Group Food items included Justification

roast, steak)

Lamb (stew, casserole, stir-fry)

Venison, hogget (roast, chops, steak, casserole, stew, stir-fry), offal (liver, kidney, pate)

fat

White meats All chicken (breast, leg, wing, casserole, stir-fry) Turkey/quail, pork (roast, chop, steak), mutton bird/duck, veal

White meats high in protein

Processed meats Sausages, frankfurters, saveloys, cherrioes, All processed, high in saturated fat and bacon, ham, luncheon meats, salami, chorizo,

meatloaf, corned beef, patties

salt

Fish and seafood Canned salmon, canned tuna, canned mackerel Snapper/hoki, gurnard, shark, tuna, salmon Shrimp/prawn, crab, mussels, pipi, whitebait, kina, squid

All fish, high in protein

Egg and egg dishes Eggs, egg mixed dishes (omelette, quiche, frittata, other baked egg dishes)

All egg protein based

Legumes Canned/dried (lentils, chickpeas, peas, beans, baked beans), hummus, dahl

All legumes

Soy products Soybeans, tofu Soy higher protein than legumes

Peanut butter and peanuts

Peanut butter, peanuts Different nutrient composition to plain nuts and seeds – sugar and salt added Nuts and seeds Nuts (peanut, brazil, walnut, almond, cashew,

pistachio)

Seeds (pumpkin, sunflower)

All nuts and seeds

Fats Butter, lard, dripping, ghee All solid fats

Coconut fats Coconut milk, cream, oil Topical

Oil and oil-based dressings

Canola, sunflower, olive, vegetable oils, cooking sprays

Salad dressing (French, Italian), Avocado

Avocado classed as a fat rather than a vegetable

Margarine Margarine – all types Different to butter and other fat spreads

Creamy dressings Mayonnaise, creamy dressings, white/cheese sauce, sour cream

Richer and higher fat content than the sauces

Sauces Tomato, barbeque, chilli, mint, soy, gravy, mustard, chutney, instant soup

Less saturated fat than the creamy dressings

Sweet spreads Jam, honey, marmalade High sugar and energy content

Savoury spreads Vegemite, marmite Lower energy and sugar

Cakes and biscuits Cakes, loaves, muffins, sweet pies, pastries, tarts, doughnuts, biscuits (plain, chocolate coated)

All baked sweet discretionary items

79

Food Group Food items included Justification

instant)

Other non-dairy based puddings (pavlova, sticky date pudding), jelly, ice blocks

a dessert item

Sweet snack foods Chocolate, lollies, muesli bars Sweet snack foods Savoury snack foods Potato chips, corn chips, twisties Savoury snack foods Crumbed and deep

fried

Crumbed chicken/fish, battered fish, potato fries, chicken nuggets

These are typically eaten together in a meal

Fast-food Meat pie, sausage roll, savouries, burgers, kebab, Chinese, Indian, Thai, Pizza

Bought high fat fast-foods

Fruit juice Fruit and vegetable juice Higher fruit content than fruit drinks Fruit drink and other

beverages

Fruit drink, sparkling grape juice, cordial, iced tea, energy drinks, sports drinks, flavoured water, soft drinks

Higher added sugar

Diet drinks Diet energy drinks, diet soft drinks, diet cordial Low calorie drink options

Tea Black tea, herbal tea May drink tea not coffee

Coffee Instant coffee, brewed water-based coffee, espresso

May drink coffee but not tea

Beer Standard, low alcohol May drink beer but not wine

Wine (red and white) White wine, red wine May drink wine but not beer

Water Water Essential in the diet, no energy

component, different to other beverages Other alcoholic

beverages

Cider, spirits, sherry, port, ready-to-drink alcoholic sodas (RTD’s), kava

All other miscellaneous alcoholic beverages

Sugar added to food and drink

White sugar Sugar specifically added to foods