Schools to get free fresh fruit and veg

SCHOOLS, old people’s homes, jails and charities could soon be receiving free fresh fruit and vegetables paid for by the European Union (EU).

The proposal is one of a series of reforms of the EU’s fruit and vegetable sector discussed by Agriculture Ministers, including Ireland’s Mary Coughlan, in Brussels yesterday. The plan would see the EU paying full price for a certain proportion of fresh produce that was not selling and giving it to children, the elderly, prisoners and the poor.

Meantime, the Minister said that her ‘Food Dude’ project — which will deliver little packs of fruit and veg to schools at a cost of over €4 million and with a contribution from the EU — would go ahead.

“Our fruit and vegetable consumption is very low. We have a lot of work to do,” she said.