Research data supporting "Discrepancies between two long-term dietary datasets in the United Kingdom (UK)"

Longitudinal dietary data for the United Kingdom (UK) on food supply, provided by FAO food balance sheets (1961-2018) (FAO-FBS), and food purchases, provided Defra household budget surveys (National Food Survey [1942-2000] and Family Food Module [2001-2018]) (Defra-HBS). Studying dietary trends can shed light on progress towards healthier and more sustainable diets but longitudinal data are often confounded by lack of standardized methods.

Two main data sources are often used for longitudinal analysis of diets: food balance sheets (per capita food supply estimated from production and trade data) and household budget surveys (household surveys on food purchased). The impact of these different collection methods has not been quantified for the UK. The data provided here were used to assess how trends in dietary change compared between the two collection methods for calories, meat and fish, nuts and pulses, and dairy, and how disparities between FAO-FBS and Defra-HBS have changed over time.