I’d argue that the health of the sailors, who were in a sense the lowest of the low was not a concern for a long time. Ships were disgusting — you could smell a military ship coming.

As early as Vasco de Gama people were aware of the power of citrus to stop scurvy — they may not have known why, but they were aware.

With the British, there was an ROI to consider as the supply of sailors were tight, and they had attrition due to things like malaria as well.