FRANKFURT — A smothie drink of spinach, apple and cucumber is very healthy, and it's also the latest health trend. Following on from the fruit smoothie, vegetable smoothies are the drink of choice for the health-conscious. "Juices that are more than 50 percent vegetable are perfect for anyone on the go," according to the author of a recent praise-up in Germany's Frankfurter Allgemeine Sonntagszeitung newspaper.

Bernhard Watzl from Germany's consumer protection body, the Max Rubner Institute, doubted that smoothies were a game-changer, saying: "If you eat five portions of fruit or vegetables a day, then you don't need to drink a smoothie too."

However, Watzl went on to say that if smoothies encourage people to eat more vegetables, then that's a positive development.