EU to provide schools with €90m of fruit and vegetables every year

A SCHEME to provide fruit and vegetables to school children across the European Union has been agreed by the Council of Agriculture Ministers.

European funds worth €90 million every year will pay for the purchase and distribution of fresh fruit and vegetables to schools.

This money will be matched by national and private funds in those member states which chose to make use of the programme.

The school fruit scheme aims to encourage good eating habits in young people, which studies show tend to be carried on into later life.

An estimated 22 million children in the EU are overweight. More than five million of these are obese and this figure is expected to rise by 400,000 annually.

Improved nutrition can play an important part in combating this problem. The scheme will begin at the start of the 2009/2010 school year.

Agriculture Commissioner Mariann Fischer Boel said giving children good habits early is crucial as they will carry these into later life.

Too many children eat far too little fruit and vegetables and often do not realise how delicious they are.

“You only have to walk down any high street in Europe to see the extent of the problems we face with overweight kids. Now we can do something about it,” she said.

Labour spokesman on agriculture and food Seán Sherlock TD said he believed the fresh produce that children will receive under the scheme should be sourced locally, not just that local producers will benefit, but also to ensure that transport and distribution costs can be kept to a minimum.

“The eating habits of children in Ireland have changed in recent years. There is a general consensus our youngsters are eating too much junk food that’s high in fat but low in nutrition, at the expense of fresh, healthy, locally produced fruit and vegetables,” he said.