Just three weeks after getting the thumbs up from one research organisation, the School Fruit & Vegetable Scheme has received further positive acclaim.
A survey by the National Foundation for Educational Research suggests that the SFVS has helped more pupils eat their recommended daily five portions of fruit and vegetables.
The scheme, introduced by the government in 2004, aims to provide all four to six-year-old children in state infant, primary and special schools to a free piece of fresh produce each school day.
Last month, a Nottingham University study revealed that 5,000 kids at 200 primary schools had on average doubled their intake of fresh produce between 2003 and 2005. The latest evaluation of the scheme, which analysed the dietary habits of more than 2,000 children at 37 schools in north-east England, found that the number of children eating their 5 A DAY has increased substantially, from 32 per cent in 2004 to 44 per cent at the time of the study.
The researchers observed: "It should be noted that the largest increase was in vegetable consumption, not fruit, which may indicate that changes in school meals had a greater impact."
Health minister Ben Bradshaw said: "Children eating more fruit and vegetables each day and reaching their five-a-day target is excellent news.
"The SFVS is important in underpinning the government's commitment to healthy eating in schools.
"It provides an opportunity for children to try out new foods particularly vegetables and for them to become accustomed to eating them as part of their daily diet."
From this month, the SFVS is to be extended to add carrots and tomatoes to the current staple diet of apples, pears, bananas and easy-peel citrus fruit.
