Free fruit and vegetables are now available everyday for more than half a million school children in Yorkshire and Humber.
Every child, aged 4 to 6-years-old, in the region will be eligible to receive a free piece of fruit or vegetable each day under the government’s £77 million National School Fruit and Vegetable Scheme.
As well as apples, bananas and easy peel citrus, the children will also have the opportunity to get Yorkshire grown organic carrots each week, from Low House Farm, Aldborough.
The farm will be delivering around ten tonnes of carrots a week to participating schools. Each carrot will be washed, cut and shaped into rounded batons and sealed into portion packs.
Four regional co-ordinators will be undertaking briefing sessions for schools from September onwards and a conference for health and education professionals has also been held to build support for the scheme in the 1,800 schools in the region.
The scheme will be rolled out in three stages, starting with south Yorkshire on October 14, west Yorkshire on November 11 and north and east Yorkshire on November 25.
John Reid, health secretary, said: “Encouraging children in Yorkshire and Humber to eat more healthily is vital if we’re to tackle the increasing problem of child obesity.
“The scheme is a key element of our efforts to combat obesity and encourage a healthier population.”
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