A lottery funding rejection has left a fresh-produce supplying charity facing closure.

The North Glasgow Community Food Inititaive (NGCFI), which provides fresh fruit and vegetables in one of Scotland’s most deprived areas, is struggling to say afloat after the rejection.

The scheme has been praised by dieticians, celebrity chefs and community leaders for providing healthy eating advice and support to more than 8,000 people living in areas with appalling records for health and nutrition, and is one of 300 similar projects aimed at improving Scotland’s health.

The cash-crisis has prompted calls for the Scottish Executive to intervene to ensure the network of community food initiatives is placed on a more stable footing.

NGCFI has been in operation since 2001 in Springburn, Sighthill, Possilpark, Royston and Germiston, where life expectancy for men is 66 - eight-years less than the Scottish average - and access to fresh fruit and vegetables is poor, according to research by Health Scotland.

The scheme, which employs two full-time and two part-time employees, last year worked with more than 8,000 people, giving educational classes on cooking, growing fruit and vegetables and selling up to £250 worth per week of fresh produce at wholesale prices.

But officials with the Big Lottery Fund questioned whether the project would be able to raise enough money to add to the grant of £215,000 over three years.