Fruit & veg boost for hundreds of pupils - why it could not have come at a better time

Struggling parents are being given a helping hand thanks to the Tesco Fruit & Veg for Schools initiative.

With money tight and the cost-of-living crisis still biting, many families are finding it hard to juggle household financial commitments and fuel their children with healthy, nutritious food.

At Saint Eithne’s Primary School in Derry, Northern Ireland, the scheme has come at just the right time.

It is one of 400 schools selected to join a first-of-its-kind scheme that will see 140,000 primary and secondary kids across Britain eat at least one piece of fresh fruit or veg a day.

Principal Terence McDowell said: “Receiving fruit and vegetables from Tesco will make a huge difference to what we offer our children.

“It could not come at a better time as we see on a daily basis the financial burden that parents continue to struggle with as a result of the cost of living crisis. This will help to relieve the financial burden of having to provide a healthy snack for their child.

“By providing a wide range of alternative healthy snacks to our children we hope to broaden their experiences when it comes to choosing fruit or vegetables that they can snack on each day at break time. We hope to extend this further by providing healthy snacks to the children at our after school clubs.”

The drive will help 140,000 primary and secondary pupils at 400 schools eat fresh fruit & veg daily (Image: Justin Kernoghan)

Britain's biggest retailer teamed up with sustainability charity Groundwork and the British Nutrition Foundation to identify schools with the largest percentage of students eligible for free school meals and high pupil premium funding.

Participating schools have all been supplied with special gift cards, topped up every two weeks or more if necessary.

The funding allocated to each school is proportionate to the number of pupils it has, ranging from £4,000 to £21,000 annually.

Armed with prepaid cards, schools can visit their nearest Tesco store whenever they like to load up trolleys and buy produce they need to prepare, cook and eat both in and outside class.

Saint Eithne’s is a Catholic primary school rated outstanding in its latest inspection.

Mr McDowell said: “We would like to set sound foundations with our children in regard to making good choices when it comes to nutrition. The Tesco scheme will allow us to provide our children with regular opportunities to experience a wider range of healthy alternatives to sugary treats.

“As well as the more formal lessons that take place in the classrooms we hope to provide the children with many opportunities to sample fruit and vegetables at break and lunch times. The children will also get to experience cooking with healthy ingredients in our after school clubs.

“We know children who come to school feeling hungry are not in a good place to begin to learn. We have been running a breakfast club to combat this for a number of years. This Tesco scheme will allow us to complement our provision to ensure all of our children have the opportunity to eat a wide range of healthy and nutritious snacks.”

The headteacher said: 'Receiving fruit & veg from Tesco will make a huge difference' (Image: Justin Kernoghan)

Tesco is pumping £4 million into a drive, launched earlier this month by the Daily Express and Michelin-trained celebrity chef Poppy O’Toole, that it hopes will give youngsters in some of the most deprived areas across the UK access to delicious produce, guaranteeing they get their five-a-day fix.

Evidence shows significant health benefits to getting at least five portions of a variety of fruit and vegetables a day.

A recommended portion is 80g with the World Health Organisation suggesting we should all eat a minimum of 400g a day in total to lower the risk of serious health issues.

Yet data from the National Diet and Nutrition Survey for food consumption, nutrient intakes and nutritional status, which tracks intake as part of a rolling programme of health surveillance, suggests just 12% of children aged between 11 and 18 meet the recommendation.

Fruit and veg are a relatively cheap and tasty source of essential nutrients for children’s health, including vitamins A and C, folate and fibre.

This new nationwide initiative aims to prove they are easy to use, taste delicious, and can be a physical and mental superpower.