A Sunshine Coast dietician is supporting a nationwide push to revive the half-time orange tradition, saying the humble fruit remains a top option for young athletes.
Ali Miles, who works with elite sporting organisations including Sunshine Coast Lightning, said oranges are packed with benefits “making them an ideal snack during winter sport”.
Her comments come as Australian fruit growers try to restore the weekend ritual, by giving away free oranges to junior teams.
The campaign follows research showing the once-common sideline snack is becoming less popular.
A YouGov survey, commissioned by growers, showed 93 per cent of parents believed half-time orange usage was dying out, with fewer than 3 in 10 kids estimated to eat wedges then.
Orange grower Michael Arnold said growers are offering the fruit to teams to save the tradition.
“We love the fact that orange wedges are an iconic part of Aussie sport, whether it’s at a junior game or at an elite level, and we don’t want to see that change,” he said.
“We’re giving away more than 25,000 oranges to make sure the next generation of sports lovers experience the fun and goodness of sharing an orange grin with their teammates.”
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Ms Miles, a performance dietitian with the Olympic Winter Institute of Australia, Sunshine Coast Lightning and the Queensland Academy of Sport, said there were good reasons why oranges were once an Australian sports favourite.
“Orange wedges are an easy and budget-friendly way to keep kids refreshed on the field,” she said.
“For children enjoying junior or community sport, half-time nutrition does not need to be complicated.
“Water and familiar choices, such as orange wedges, are a great option and can support their nutrition both on and off the field.
“Oranges naturally provide carbohydrates for energy, they have a high-water content to help with hydration, and are packed with vitamin C, making them an ideal half-time snack during winter sport.”
The research showed the iconic half-time snack was disappearing with each generation.
Gen X parents were almost twice as likely as millennial parents to say their children regularly ate orange wedges at half-time (42 per cent compared with 26 per cent).
Millenial parents were more likely than Gen X parents to identify sports drinks, milk drinks and sports as common half-time snacks for their kids.
But 77 per cent of parents agreed they would love to see half-time orange wedges make a comeback for their kids and 78 per cent recalled it as a fond childhood memory.
Parents stated convenience as the main reason the tradition was dying out, with 43 per cent saying packaged snacks, such as snack bars, chips, lollies or sports drinks, were easier to hand out.
The survey also showed there was still a COVID-19 hangover, with a third attributing the decline in half-time oranges to concerns about sharing food since COVID-19. and 38 per cent said families now preferred to bring their own food.
Mr Arnold said he’s regularly on orange duties for his daughter’s netball team and he has shared a video on his social pages to show his cutting tip for fuss-free orange wedges.
“Slice off the ends to make keep the orange steady and then cut in quarters. Trim out the core as this can be bitter to bite into and then halve again. I find eighths is easier for junior sports kids to tuck into and just a few oranges will feed the whole team.”
Teams can register here.
