Vegetable shortage lowering productivity? The link between presenteeism and diet

April 7, 20262026年7月29日

Summary of this article

Presenteeism accounts for about 80% of a company’s health-related costs, causing a loss of 600,000–800,000 yen per person a year. The Japanese vegetable intake is short, averaging 280 g against the 350 g target, and the quality of lunch determines afternoon performance. We explain methods of improving the workplace food environment that can be put into practice at the office—such as setting out dried vegetables, ready-to-serve office cafeterias, and meal-subsidy programs—along with metrics for measuring their effect.

TOC

What you will learn from this article

What Presenteeism Is and How Much It Costs Companies
Data Linking Vegetable Shortfall and Productivity Decline
Effects You Can Expect from Improving the Food Environment
Ways to Address Vegetable Shortfall That You Can Start Right Away at the Office

What Is Presenteeism? The True Nature of the Invisible Loss

“I show up for work, but I’m not in top condition and can’t deliver my real performance”—this state is calledPresenteeism.

In fact, of a company’s health-related costs,about 80% is loss from presenteeism, it’s said. That’s far larger than absenteeism (loss from taking sick leave). That’s because presenteeism affects all employees a little at a time and, being “invisible,” tends to get put on the back burner.

In a Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry survey, the loss from presenteeism is estimated atabout 600,000–800,000 yen per person a year. For a company of 50 people, that’s 30–40 million yen a year. Honestly, many people are probably surprised to hear this figure.

The Relationship Between Diet/Nutrition and Presenteeism

The Effect of Vegetable Shortfall on Performance

According to the Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare’s National Health and Nutrition Survey,the Japanese vegetable intake averages about 280 g against the recommended 350 g. About 70 g (one bunch of spinach) is short every day.

As for how this vegetable shortfall affects the body:

Nutrients that fall short	Effect on the body	Effect on work
B vitamins	Fatigue and sluggishness	Decline in concentration
Vitamin C	体調をくずしやすい	Prone to catching colds
Dietary fiber	Deterioration of the gut environment	Afternoon drowsiness and lethargy
Potassium	Swelling and fatigue	Long hours of desk work become hard
Iron	Anemia and dizziness	Feeling mentally foggy

What we want you to pay attention to here isthe link between dietary-fiber shortfall and afternoon performance decline.

The Quality of Lunch Determines Afternoon Productivity

炭水化物中心の食事だと、食後に眠気やだるさを感じやすくなります。午後2〜3時ごろに強い眠気に襲われる、いわゆる「ランチ後の睡魔」ですね。

一方、食物繊維が豊富な野菜を一緒に摂ると、食後がゆるやかになり、午後のパフォーマンスが安定します。つまり、ランチに野菜を追加するだけで、午後の生産性が変わってくるわけです。

Calculating the Economic Loss from Presenteeism

Let’s look at it with concrete numbers.

How to Estimate the Loss

Metrics	Calculation method	Guideline
Annual loss per person	Annual income × presenteeism rate	About 600,000–800,000 yen
Presenteeism rate	Measured by self-assessment survey	Average 15–20%
Share attributable to diet	Correlation analysis of eating habits and condition	About 20–30%

Calculating for a company of 50, say:

Annual loss: 50 people × 700,000 yen = 35 million yen
Of which, diet-related: 35 million yen × 25% = 8.75 million yen
Investment in food measures: 50,000 yen/month × 12 months = 600,000 yen

The return on investment isover 10 times. Bluntly put, improving the food environment is one of the most cost-effective health investments a company can make.

Four Ways to Improve the Office Food Environment

Method 1: Setting Out Dried Vegetables and Freeze-Dried Soups

This is the lowest-hurdle method. Put dried vegetables and soups in the break area so employees can use them freely.

Initial cost: 0 yen (fine if you have a shelf)
Monthly: 10,000–30,000 yen (only the cost of stock)
Effect: Improves nutritional balance by “adding a bit of vegetable” to a convenience-store bento

Method 2: Introducing a Ready-to-Serve Office Cafeteria Service

A method of introducing a refrigerated or shelf-stable office cafeteria service. A guideline of 60,000–70,000 yen a month and up.

Method 3: Meal-Subsidy Programs (Vouchers, E-Money)

A method of letting employees use nearby restaurants with meal vouchers or e-money. With the FY2026 tax reform, the tax-free allowance is expected to expand to 7,500 yen a month.

Method 4: Nutrition Education and Food-Education Events

Regularly hold seminars by registered dietitians and introduce healthy menus. An approach that changes employees’ eating behavior from the knowledge side.

How to Measure the Effect of Food Measures

“We introduced the measure but we don’t know if it worked” is a problem, isn’t it? Track the effect with the following metrics.

Main measurement metrics

Metrics	Measurement Method	Measurement frequency
Presenteeism score	Surveys such as the WHO-HPQ	Twice a year
Usage rate of food measures	Count of purchases and distributions	Monthly
Employees’ vegetable intake	Simple dietary survey	Quarterly
Health-checkup figures	Aggregation of regular checkup results	Once a year
Afternoon self-assessment of condition	Pulse survey	Once a month

Once you’ve gathered 3–6 months of data, it becomesevidence you can use as-is in your Certified Health & Productivity Management Organization application.

FAQ

Q1: Can presenteeism really be measured?

It can be measured with standardized questionnaires such as the WHO-HPQ (World Health Organization Health and Work Performance Questionnaire). Being self-assessment there is bias, but it’s perfectly usable for tracking change over time and comparing before and after a measure.

Q2: Are there causes of presenteeism other than diet?

Of course. Lack of sleep, mental health, allergies, and back and shoulder pain are also major factors. That said, because diet indirectly affects all these factors, it can be called the most fundamental measure.

Q3: How long until food measures show an effect?

個人差はありますが、食習慣を見直した効果は2〜4週間で体感する人が多いです。組織全体のデータとして有意差が出るのは、3〜6か月が目安です。

Q4: Can you really get nutrition from dried vegetables?

Dried vegetables retain nutrients such as dietary fiber, minerals, and vitamins A and E almost intact. Eating 350 g of fresh vegetables every day is ideal, but for people who find that hard in practice, dried vegetables are an easy supplementary means.

Q5: Do even small companies need presenteeism measures?

If anything, smaller companies need them more. If one person out of ten sees a performance drop, the impact on the whole is far greater than at a large company. Setting out dried vegetables can be started from around 10,000 yen a month, so give it a try first.

Author of this article

Rei Kojima Agriture CEO

CEO of Agriture Inc. Runs a contract processing and OEM business centered on dried vegetables and dried fruit. In partnership with farmers within Kyoto Prefecture, he pursues “sustainable food distribution” through the use of non-standard vegetables and support for sixth-industrialization. Drawing on extensive hands-on experience at manufacturing sites, he provides support that walks alongside every business considering OEM—from product planning and prototyping to small-lot handling, packaging design, and sales-channel development.