Stoke School gets fruity

It’s Monday morning at Stoke School and there is a special delivery that the tamariki are looking forward to - 200 pieces of fruit.

One piece of fruit for every pupil, plus a few extras for staff, are delivered to the school twice a week as part of the Fruit in Schools (FIS) initiative. This particular delivery is apples, which puts a smile on eight-year-old Tayla Hambrook’s face.

“I like the apples, they are very juicy,” she says.

Stoke School and Victory Primary School are currently the only schools in Nelson that receive the fruit.

Stoke School principal Sarah Davies says the FIS has been running for the entire 14 years she has been there.

“It’s just run continuously. It’s a great programme. It was one of the first healthy eating initiatives and it’s good for our kids because they have access to fresh fruit all year round,” she says.

“Fruit isn’t always accessible to children and can be very expensive. They look forward to their fruit and are disappointed if there isn’t any.”

Tamariki have the opportunity to try more than two dozen fruit and vegetable varieties during the school year.

“We’ve had strawberries, pineapple, cherry tomatoes, little cucumbers, and we get a good base of oranges, apples, and bananas.”

Sarah says the initiative complements the Ministry of Education’s Ka Ora, Ka Ako - Healthy School Lunches programme, which they receive.

“For kids who are hungry, the fruit can also top them up. If they come in after a huge run around at morning tea and want something to eat, then we’ve got fruit, which is perfect.”

The FIS initiative is funded by Te Whatu Ora, managed by United Fresh, and supported by the 5+ A Day Charitable Trust.

Chair of the trust, David Smith, says that FIS provides critical nutrition for tamariki as inflation hits many whānau in the pocket.

“It’s no secret that families throughout the Nelson region are doing it tough this year. FIS is a great way to ensure the healthy kai grown on orchards and farms around the country gets to where it’s most needed.”

Nine out of 10 principals enrolled in the initiative say their children’s overall health would decline if FIS ended, according to 5+ A Day Trustee, Dr Carolyn Lister.

“Our research found that 70 per cent of parents said that their child liked eating fruit more because of FIS, and 37 per cent said they like eating vegetables more.”

Sarah adds that the fruit not only provides a healthy dose of vitamin C but plenty of learning opportunities, too.

“Some use it as an opportunity to practice their te reo - asking for and receiving the fruit and naming the fruit in te reo. Some will have it with a story, and there is always the component of taking the time to talk about good eating,” she says.

“If we have a big group of absences we might use the fruit for cooking - our five-year-olds have a kitchen in their space and they’ve made apple crumble and fruit salad.”

Any leftover fruit gets put out for the school community and they can collect it from the front gate.

“There is never any shortfall of people consuming it.”