BeijingMay 17, 2026 /PRNewswire/ — On May 16, the 8th National Nutrition Science Popularization Conference was held in Beijing, officially kicking off the 12th National Nutrition Week. This year’s Nutrition Week, themed “Nutrition Table, Family Health,” encourages families to scientifically plan daily meals, promoting millions of households toward nutritious dining and continuing to implement high-quality dietary practices.
Scene from the release of the “Scientific Nutrition Table · National High-Quality Dietary Promotion Action” report
During the main event that morning, the Chinese Nutrition Society officially released the “Scientific Nutrition Table · National High-Quality Dietary Promotion Action” report, supported by Zespri. At the same time, committed to advancing nutrition health education, Zespri, a leading global fruit brand, attended as an industry representative and participated in the launch ceremony of the “Scientific Nutrition Table · National High-Quality Dietary Promotion Action” — Student High-Quality Dietary Plate Implementation Initiative. Zespri has supported the “Smart Food Education” children’s food education standardization project for several years. This year, on the national platform of the National Nutrition Week launch event, by supporting the release of an authoritative report and participating in the initiative, Zespri aims to help extend high-quality dietary actions further into student plate practices, promoting the spread of scientific dietary concepts to family tables and society at large, providing a sustainable pathway for building a “Healthy China.”
From “Eating Enough” to “Eating Well”: High-Nutrient-Density Foods Become Key Solutions
Currently, over half of Chinese residents have imbalanced dietary nutrition structures. The issue of “eating enough” without “eating well” is becoming a new hidden concern for national nutrition. According to data from the Chinese Nutrition Society, excessive fat energy supply and sodium intake are now common among Chinese residents (63.6% and 89.4%, respectively), while insufficient intake of vitamin C and potassium is as high as 76.4% and 81.9%. Dietary fiber remains chronically low, and deficiencies in B vitamins and calcium are widespread. This nutritional problem is closely linked to imbalanced nutrient intake at family tables; the solution lies in starting with scientifically balanced daily meals. In response, Zespri actively supports systematic research, jointly exploring pathways to help residents transition from “eating enough” to “eating well” through scientific dietary guidance.
Yang Yuexin, President of the Chinese Nutrition Society, interprets the “Scientific Nutrition Table · National High-Quality Dietary Promotion Action” report
The “Scientific Nutrition Table · National High-Quality Dietary Promotion Action” report released at the event noted that the burden of chronic diseases in China is increasing, with high-sodium diets and insufficient intake of whole grains and fruits becoming key dietary risks. Fast-paced lifestyles and the consumption of processed foods squeeze out fresh food intake like fruits, leading to structural deficiencies in key nutrients among residents. Therefore, the report advocates for high-quality diets, increasing intake of high-nutrient-density foods, and promoting a shift from “eating enough” to “eating well.” Kiwifruit, as a representative high-nutrient-density fruit, is rich in vitamin C, potassium, dietary fiber, and over 10 natural nutrients. For example, 100g of golden kiwifruit per day provides 171mg of vitamin C, meeting the adult daily requirement of 100mg. This year, Zespri globally refreshed its brand proposition to “Grown for Good,” aiming to raise public awareness of hidden hunger and help families fill daily nutritional gaps through delicious, natural, and nutrient-rich kiwifruit. Its core philosophy aligns closely with the report’s recommendations.
From Student Plates to Family Tables: A Long-Term Pathway for Promoting High-Quality Diets
At the conference, Zespri, along with authoritative representatives from nutrition, disease control, and culinary fields, jointly launched the “Scientific Nutrition Table · National High-Quality Dietary Promotion Action” — Student High-Quality Dietary Plate Implementation Initiative. This initiative targets student groups, driving high-quality diets from concept advocacy to campus practice, becoming a key focus of the national high-quality dietary action.
Scene from the launch of the “Scientific Nutrition Table · National High-Quality Dietary Promotion Action” — Student High-Quality Dietary Plate Implementation Initiative, second from right is Ms. Huang Guohui, Global Chief Marketing Officer of Zespri
Research from the Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention shows that insufficient fruit and vegetable intake and “hidden hunger” are now dual challenges facing school-age children and adolescents in China. About 80% of children consume less than 60% of the expert-recommended daily intake of fresh fruits and vegetables. Over time, children face increased risks of micronutrient deficiencies, developmental delays, and chronic diseases.
Against this backdrop, Zespri has supported the “Smart Food Education” children’s food education standardization curriculum project since 2023. The project aims to “help children develop lifelong health literacy through scientific food education,” actively exploring systematic food education at the school level to translate nutritional awareness into actual dietary behavior. Over three years, the project has covered 35 cities nationwide, nearly 2,000 schools, and over 300 communities, benefiting 1.5 million students and families cumulatively. It has gradually developed a standardized curriculum system that can be promoted and replicated, serving as a foundational practice for implementing high-quality dietary concepts.
With the launch of this year’s Student High-Quality Dietary Plate Implementation Initiative on the National Nutrition Week platform, the “Smart Food Education” project will further deepen and expand. Focusing on key concepts like “dietary balance” and “high nutrient density,” it will guide students to better apply scientific dietary principles to their daily plate choices through engaging classes, “dual-teacher classrooms,” and home-school collaboration. Starting from schools, Zespri hopes to drive the continuous spread of high-quality dietary concepts to family tables, allowing the vision of a “Healthy China” to take root in more schools and households.
Zespri Kiwifruit: Grown for Good, Naturally Supporting Improved Dietary Quality
Ms. Huang Guohui, Global Chief Marketing Officer of Zespri, stated: “Guided by our brand proposition ‘Grown for Good,’ Zespri places nutrition at the core of our long-term development, systematically addressing global nutritional health challenges. China is one of Zespri’s most important strategic markets globally. We consistently adhere to the principle of ‘In China, for China,’ committed to providing Chinese consumers with higher-quality, nutritious, and delicious kiwifruit. We aim to naturally support improving the dietary quality of Chinese residents, collaborate with professional partners across sectors, promote healthier nutritional choices for the public, fulfill our corporate social responsibility, and contribute to building a ‘Healthy China.'”
Ms. Li Meijuan, Vice President of Marketing for Zespri Greater China, said: “Zespri has always been committed to advancing nutrition health education, upholding the concept of ‘home-school collaboration’ in child and family nutrition education, and guiding the public to establish scientific and reasonable dietary habits. In the future, Zespri will continue to deepen cooperation with authoritative organizations such as the Chinese Nutrition Society and the Chinese Association for Student Nutrition & Health Promotion, persistently using diverse and innovative science communication and nutrition education to strengthen the foundation of national health.”
Scene from the Zespri booth at the 12th National Nutrition Week
As a leading global health fruit brand, while providing Chinese consumers with high-quality, high-standard, and high-nutrition kiwifruit products, Zespri consistently focuses on the nutritional health status of the entire population and continuously promotes healthy lifestyles. In this context, Zespri collaborates with major authoritative institutions to deepen the reach of scientific nutrition knowledge and enhance public health literacy. Last year, Zespri participated in the video collaboration for Xinhuanet’s revamped large-scale science popularization program “Nutrition Translator,” focusing on the nutritional health needs of the entire population to provide scientific and practical nutrition knowledge. Additionally, Zespri has long-term partnerships with multiple authoritative professional institutions, including the Chinese Association for Student Nutrition & Health Promotion and the Institute of Food and Nutrition Development, Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs, for nutrition health education cooperation. This year also marks the sixth year of deep collaboration between Zespri and the Chinese Nutrition Society. The two parties have synergistically upgraded the professional system of nutrition concepts: from jointly releasing the “White Paper on Healthy Diets for Chinese White-Collar Women” in 2021, focusing on women’s nutrition, to last year’s collaborative release of the “Report on the Concept and Health Value of Food Nutrient Density — Food Selection Guide for Healthy Body Weight,” providing visual tools like radar charts to help the public choose high-nutrient-density foods, to years of deep support and participation in the National Nutrition Science Conference and National Nutrition Week activities, Zespri continues to deeply cultivate the field of national nutrition health science popularization.
Zespri will be guided long-term by its global brand proposition “Grown for Good” — where “Good” represents altruistic intentions and actions, and “Grown” signifies dedicated cultivation and leadership. Zespri, Grown for Good, nurtures fruit with a nurturing heart, practicing goodwill towards consumers, partners, growers, and society at every step, always caring for the nutritional future with natural, delicious, high-quality kiwifruit. Holding this original intention, Zespri continues to respond to the practical needs of public nutrition health, deeply cultivates the next generation’s food education practices, leverages the 10+ natural nutritional advantages of kiwifruit, actively responds to the call of “Healthy China, Nutrition First,” collaborates with partners to build a national health barrier, brings the concepts of nutritious tables and healthy families along with rational dietary actions into millions of households, and jointly creates a green, healthy, long-term sustainable new future for national nutrition.