ALMONDBURY Infant and Nursery School pupils will be among those getting free fruit and vegetables.

Deputy head Claire Kenworthy welcomed the move.

She said: "We have always tried to encourage children to eat fruit and vegetables.

"We provide health snacks at mid-morning as a lot of children come to school without breakfast.

"We will still do that, but this new initiative means we will be able to give them a piece of fruit in an afternoon."

"With such a variety of diets that children have now, it is good to know that they will be getting two of the five recommended pieces of fruit a day."

But what do the children think?

Anna Lister, aged four, said: "I like fruit. My favourites are apples, but only with the pips taken out."

Toh Ochonma, five, said: "My favourites are strawberries and mango."

Michael Goode, also five, said: "Fruit is good, because it makes you big and healthy. I like bananas and apples."

Ashleigh Wan, six, said: "I like apples, pears and strawberries best. I eat lots of fruit and bring it to school."

Katie Lee, six, said: "I eat a lot of fruit at home. Apples and bananas are my favourite."

* A can of soft drink or a chocolate bar can have six or seven teaspoons of sugar.

* It takes 90 minutes of running to burn off the calories contained in a large chocolate bar.

* The International Obesity Task Force said in 2003 that over 40% of the UK population could be obese "within a generation".

* In 2001, 23% of women and 21% of men were obese, compared with 8% of women and 6% of men in 1980.

* The National Audit Office says that by 2010 obesity will cost £3.6bn a year in England.