FIREFIGHTERS have volunteered for a tough new duty - giving up meat for a week to raise cash for charity.

A four-strong team from Northallerton station is to join the national Dalepak Firefighters Challenge, part of National Vegetarian Week.

The three firemen and the control manager are becoming honorary vegetarians for a week to prove that they can live a healthy and active lifestyle without meat.

Richard Goodall, Andrew Ramsbottom, Peter Stamper and Elizabeth Hampson have signed up for the challenge to raise money for a colleague paralysed in the line of duty.

The challenge has been set by Leeming Bar frozen food innovator, Dalepak, and is being taken by firefighters all over the country, including Blue Watch, at Peterlee, County Durham, colleagues of TV's Big Brother programme resident fireman Jonny Regan.

Dalepak is offering donations to the favourite charities of successful firemen, many of whom are also being sponsored for the week.

The firm's marketing director, Richard Holt, said: "We are not asking them to live on just chickpeas and lentils for the week. In fact, to make the task easier for them, we will be providing them with a week's worth of Dalepak vegetable grills, fingers and quarter-pounders to demonstrate that vegetarian food can be nutritious, convenient and very tasty."