Over 400,000 primary school children have now taken part in a programme aimed at encouraging young people to eat more fruit and vegetables.

The Food Dudes programme is an initiative of the Department of Agriculture and Bord Bia and has already been successfully carried out in more than 2,700 national schools.

"These numbers mean that over 80% of all national schools have participated in Food Dudes. Our Food Dudes programme not only catches the imagination of the children but also their parents. It has the capacity to make a positive impact on children's eating habits and to play a significant role in contributing to a sustainable behaviour change in addressing the major challenge of obesity," commented Minister for Agrilculture, Simon Coveney.

The programme was originally developed by the University of Wales to encourage children to eat more fruit and vegetables in school and at home. It is based on the so-called three Rs - positive role models (the Food Dude characters), repeated testing and rewards. It has proven effective, leading to big increases in the consumption of fruit and vegetables by those taking part.

It was originally launched in 2007 and by May of this year, 2,743 schools and more than 419,000 children had taken part. 

Meanwhile, a follow-on programme, Food Dudes - the Next Generation, has also been developed by the University of Wales. It provides the new intake of children to primary schools each year with rewarded tasting of four fruit and vegetables. It was piloted in 24 schools last year and is being rolled out to 100 schools this year.

According to the department, this will ensure that new school entrants experience rewarded fruit and vegetable tasting ‘at the earliest possible stage'.

"I know that all parents are aware of the necessity of a healthy diet for their children and the important role that fruit and vegetables play in the formation of healthy eating habits at an early age. I am also aware that parents and teachers alike welcome both the Food Dudes and its Next Generation programme in the school curriculum. It endorses what parents are teaching their children in the home and supports the necessity to increase children's fruit and vegetable consumption," Minister Coveney said.

He called on all primary schools that have not signed up to the programme to do so ‘as soon as possible'.

Schools who would like to participate in the programme can find out more here www.fooddudes.ie. The site also contains information for parents and children.