TENS of thousands of youngsters are to get free fruit and vegetables at school in a bid to promote healthy eating and tackle obesity.

Every child aged from four to six will be eligible under the Government's £77m National School Fruit and Vegetable Scheme.

In North Yorkshire, youngsters will be eating locally-grown organic carrots, alongside apples, bananas and easy-peel citrus fruit.

Each week during term-time, ten tonnes of carrots will be picked from 60 acres of fields at Low House Farm, Aldborough, near Boroughbridge, and supplied to participating schools.

Four regional co-ordinators have begun giving briefings at schools and the scheme will be rolled out across the county from November 25.

Pilot schemes run elsewhere in the region have proved successful.

Scheme co-ordinator and public health nutritionist Rosie Denison said: "The evidence shows that eating at least five portions of a variety of fruit and vegetables each day has very real health benefits.

"It could help prevent up to 20 per cent of deaths from heart disease and cancers.

"But current figures on children's fruit and vegetable consumption are not encouraging. One in five children do not eat any fruit; three in five don't eat any leafy green vegetables, and half drink no pure fruit juice.

"And kids in the lowest income groups eat the least of all."