Tesco and Sainsbury's supermarkets have failed to sign up to use a new Department of Health logo designed to boost people's consumption of fruit and vegetables.

The "five-a-day" logo, to be unveiled tomorrow, is intended to be a universal quality mark for food which could count towards the daily portions thought needed to help to ward off heart disease and some cancers. But Sainsbury's is preparing to use its own five-a-day logo from May.

The company said last night that it could wait no longer to settle arguments over what types of composite and processed foods might qualify for inclusion in the scheme. It was also angry that the government's scheme only applied to England, while it sold food throughout Britain.

Tesco is having further talks, while Heinz - which is among the manufacturers which would be most affected by the restrictions imposed by the official scheme - is continuing to market up to 70 products under the banner "5 a day the Heinz way".

Only 13% of men and 15% of women eat five portions a day of fruit and vegetables, and the government believes consumers are confused about what counts. So far it has outlined examples of 80g portions which qualify under the scheme, including cooked, canned and frozen foods, and pure juices.

But talks on other processed and composite foods have stalled - meaning, for instance, that canned soups and beans with added salt, sugar or fats cannot feature yet in the revamped government scheme.

Campaigners accuse Heinz of spreading confusion by claiming that, for instance, a serving of spaghetti in tomato sauce counts as a vegetable portion, or a serving of tomato soups equivalent to two portions.

Gill Fine, Sainsbury's head of nutrition, said: "If we are trying to make it easier for people to eat more fruit and vegetables, we need more flexibility, we need to make it enjoyable." The company would be putting its logo on foods which had "controlled" amounts of added salt, sugar and fats.

She insisted the company fully backed the drive to get people to eat five portions a day.

Heinz said it was waiting for the Department of Health to discuss details of composite foods and added ingredients before it decided what to do.

Tesco said : "We have had our own logo for a couple of years. It has been really popular with customers, who appreciate the guidance it gives them."

Asda, however, is among about 50 companies adopting the government scheme. "We want to support the government in a coordinated response that maximises the impact and helps get the message across," it said.

The Department of Health said it was unable to say when outstanding issues would be settled.

Kath Dalmeny, of the Food Commission lobby group, said it was disappointing that companies were not not working with the Department of Health "to make sure these messages are very clear and simple for people to understand".

"We all should own the five-a-day message," she said. "It is a public health message, not one owned by companies."

Fitting the bill

Examples of approved foods in 80g portions, drained if canned

Fresh apple 1 medium apple
Pureed apple 2 heaped tbsp
Avocado Half an avocado
Fresh pear 1 medium pear
Canned pear 2 halves or seven slices
Fresh pineapple 1 large slice
Canned pineapple 2 rings or 12 chunks
Dried pineapple 1 heaped tbsp
Satsuma 2 small satsumas
Fresh asparagus 5 spears
Canned asparagus 7 spears
Cooked broad beans 3 heaped tbsp
Bottled beetroot 3 baby whole or 7 slices
Fresh peas 3 heaped tbsp
Frozen peas 3 heaped tbsp
Canned peas 3 heaped tbsp
Tomato puree 1 heaped tbsp
Canned plum tomato 2 whole
Fresh tomato 1 medium, 7 cherry
Sun-dried tomato 4 pieces