Slashdot has reported:

Many UK fruit and vegetables contain 20% to 50% less of several key nutrients than crops did in the 1960s, according to a new study from researchers at startup studio Deep Science Ventures. The research found people may need to eat twice as many vegetables to obtain the same amounts of minerals such as potassium, magnesium and copper as were present in food 60 years ago.

Researchers attribute the decline in nutrient and vitamin levels to deteriorating soil quality and selective breeding that prioritises faster crop growth over health benefits. Their findings raise the possibility that the UK advice to eat five portions of fruit and vegetables each day, introduced in 2003, may need to be revised.

People taking weight-loss drugs could face greater risk from the nutrient shortfall, the report said, because the treatments may lead them to consume less food. The researchers said nature-friendly farming methods, including planting crops that replenish soil nutrients, could help improve the health benefits of vegetables.

Will Summers, a senior associate at Deep Science Ventures, said: “we've been quietly hollowing out what's inside our food.” The findings were reported by The Telegraph. The study’s comparison concerns minerals in vegetables relative to levels in food from six decades earlier, while its broader results describe losses across several key nutrients in many crops.