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Nutrition

How to Eat 30 Plants a Week (and What Counts)

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6 min
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By
Alex Fahey

Pictured: Celeriac Schnitzel with Apple and Lentil Slaw

Short answer

Eating 30 different plants a week is a gut-health target popularised by Professor Tim Spector of ZOE. It comes from a 2018 observational study in which people eating 30 or more types of plant a week tended to have more diverse gut microbiomes than those eating 10 or fewer. Wholegrains, beans, lentils, nuts, seeds, herbs and spices all count.

Contents

Where the number comes from

The 30-plant target comes from the American Gut Project, a large citizen-science study published in 2018 that collected gut samples from over 10,000 people across the US, UK and Australia. Tim Spector of King's College London led the UK arm (the British Gut Project).

Participants who ate 30 or more different types of plant a week tended to have a more diverse gut microbiome than those who ate 10 or fewer. That's an association in a large observational dataset. It doesn't show that hitting exactly 30 prevents or cures anything, and 30 isn't a medical cut-off. The useful principle is to eat a broader range of plant foods, and going from 10 to 20 different plants is an improvement on its own.

In Spector's framing, the old "five a day" was about quantity and "30 plants a week" is about diversity. He describes the gut as a garden that does better planted with many different species than with a lot of one.

Why variety beats counting calories (for your gut)

Most diet advice is about eating less: fewer calories, less fat, less sugar. Gut health is one of the few areas where the advice is to eat more, and more varied. That's a big part of why plant variety is built into Chop it. Advice about "more" is advice people enjoy following.

Different plants feed different gut bacteria. Broccoli, oats and black beans each feed different microbes, and no single food feeds them all. So a diet built on three or four "healthy" staples can still leave your gut under-fed.

This ties into a quieter UK problem: fibre. Government guidelines recommend adults eat 30g of fibre a day, but the latest National Diet and Nutrition Survey found that 96% of adults did not meet the recommendation. The foods that widen your plant count (pulses, wholegrains, nuts, seeds and veg) are the same foods that help close the fibre gap.

What counts as a plant (the full list)

This is where most people undercount. Every one of these counts as a plant point, once per week:

CategoryExamples
VegetablesCarrots, broccoli, spinach, peppers, onions, courgette, leeks, tomatoes
FruitApples, berries, bananas, oranges, kiwi, avocado
WholegrainsOats, brown rice, wholewheat pasta, quinoa, barley, rye
Beans & pulsesChickpeas, lentils, kidney beans, butter beans, peas
NutsAlmonds, walnuts, cashews, peanuts, hazelnuts
SeedsPumpkin, sunflower, chia, flax, sesame
HerbsBasil, coriander, parsley, mint, rosemary, thyme
SpicesCumin, turmeric, paprika, cinnamon, ginger, black pepper
Extras (count, in moderation)Coffee, tea, dark chocolate (70%+), extra-virgin olive oil

A sensible way to count:

  • Don't game the number. Eat normal amounts of the main plant foods. Herbs and spices count, and ZOE suggests using them several times across the week, but a token pinch isn't a substitute for fruit, vegetables, pulses or wholegrains.
  • Variety, not repetition. Spinach three times this week is still one plant point. The count resets each week.
  • Different types of the same plant don't multiply. A red apple and a green apple are one point. Different species do count separately: a chickpea and a kidney bean are two.
  • Herbs and spices are the cheat code. A spice-heavy curry or a herby dressing can add five or six plant points to a single meal.

A realistic week

No spreadsheet needed. Ordinary meals stack up fast, and one mixed meal can cover 8–10 plants:

  • A bowl of porridge with berries, nuts and seeds: oats, blueberries, almonds, chia, flax = 5 plants.
  • A chickpea and veg curry: chickpeas, onion, garlic, tomato, spinach, plus cumin, turmeric, ginger, coriander = 9 plants.
  • A simple lunch salad: mixed leaves, cucumber, pepper, avocado, pumpkin seeds, olive oil, a squeeze of lemon = 7 plants.

That's three meals and you're already past 20, with overlaps trimmed. Add a couple of snacks (an apple, a handful of walnuts) and one more varied dinner, and 30 is in reach by Sunday.

If you want a starting point, count one normal week first. You'll probably land between 10 and 20. Then add the easy wins: seeds on your breakfast, beans in a stew, an extra herb or spice, a vegetable you don't usually buy.

The catch: keeping count is the hard part

Most people who try the 30-plant challenge hit the same wall. You start a tally in a notes app, forget it by Wednesday, and never find out whether you hit the target or stalled at 14. I know because that was me.

Chop it can take this bit of food admin off your hands. Keep the recipes you want to cook in one library, whether they started in ChatGPT, a cookbook, a website or a social post. Once you plan the week, Weekly balance (the Weekly Diversity Score) gives you a view of plants, fibre and protein across those meals, so you can spot repetition without keeping a tally in Notes.

Weekly balance supports the bigger job: keeping every good recipe, then moving it through a plan, one shopping list and the kitchen. It should help you widen a week you actually want to eat, not turn dinner into homework.

It won't cook for you, and 30 plants is achievable with a notebook and some discipline. But if tracking is what's beaten you before, having the count kept automatically is what turns it from a one-week experiment into a habit.

Sources: the American Gut Project paper, ZOE's current guide to 30 plants a week, NHS fibre guidance and the National Diet and Nutrition Survey 2019 to 2023.

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Quick answers

  • How many plants should I eat a day?
    There's no official daily target. The guideline is weekly, which works out at roughly four to five different plants a day. A couple of varied meals covers that.
  • Does coffee count as a plant?
    Yes. Coffee, tea, dark chocolate (70% cocoa or higher) and extra-virgin olive oil all count, because they're rich in polyphenols, the plant compounds gut bacteria feed on. They're a bonus in normal amounts, not a strategy.
  • Is 30 plants a week the same as five-a-day?
    No. Five-a-day counts portions of fruit and veg for general health. 30 plants counts the variety of all plant foods, including grains, pulses, nuts, herbs and spices, to support a diverse gut microbiome. They measure different things, so count your fruit and veg portions separately.
  • Can I hit 30 plants on a budget?
    Yes. Tinned beans, frozen mixed veg, oats, a bag of mixed seeds and a spice rack are cheap and each add several plant points. Frozen and tinned count exactly the same as fresh.
  • What if I have IBS or a sensitive gut?
    Increase variety and fibre gradually, and drink plenty of water. A sudden jump can cause bloating and gas while your gut adjusts. Some fermentable fibres can trigger IBS symptoms, so check with your GP or a dietitian before big changes.

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