BRITONS 'SPEND MORE ON ALCOHOL THAN FRUIT AND VEG'

The average UK household spends more each week on alcohol to drink at home than on fresh fruit and vegetables, according to a detailed breakdown of the nation's spending habits released on February 20th.

As a nation, the UK spends £5.90 a week on spirits, wine and beer for home consumption compared with a combined total of £5.40 on fresh fruit and vegetables, according to figures compiled by the Office for National Statistics. Households also spend £6.10 a week on chocolate, sweets, cakes, biscuits and soft drinks. £5.40 a week goes on cigarettes, cigars and illegal drugs, and an average of just £1.70 a week on hospital services.

The Expenditure and Food Survey examined the spending habits of a representative sample of almost 7,000 UK households from April 2002 to March 2003, using a scale of 10 income groups. The average weekly spend was £406.

If Mushroom marketers could only find a way to package 'shrooms as a bottle of beer or booze of some sort then mushroom industry would be landed!

To illustrate the findings of the survey, the ONS has recreated a statistical house in Kingston, south London, that shows a vivid representation of what the average UK household spends its money on.