Irish horticulture minister Trevor Sargent has praised the Incredible Edibles initiative, set up to encourage schoolchildren to grow their own fresh produce and award more than €10,000 (£8,600) in educational funds.

Two-thirds of the Republic’s total primary schools are taking part in the project organised by state-funded body Agri-Aware, which aims to educate the public on farming and food.

This builds on the first such initiative, Meet the Spuds, launched last year to mark the UN-designated International Year of the Potato.

This year, participating schools have to grow the so-called Incredible Edibles - lettuce, cabbage, scallions, potatoes and strawberries - and record the exercise in a classroom diary.

The schools judged to have produced the top 10 diaries will share prizes of more than €10,000 in educational funds.

The project is backed by Bord Bia, the state agency responsible for horticulture, as well as by farm research and advisory service Teagasc and some of the Republic’s leading fruit and vegetable growers and distributors.

Earlier this year, an Incredible Edibles growing kit was distributed to all schools, complete with seeds, compost, trays and an instructional DVD. Other aids provided include an interactive website, a growing calendar, wall charts and a nutritional advice booklet, Lettuce Eat!

Agri-Aware chairwoman Mairead Lavery said the huge interest displayed in the project by both pupils and teachers reflects what is happening in the wider community, with the cultivation of back gardens and the development of allotments as more people grow their own food. She believes that the knowledge acquired by the pupils will also create a greater awareness and appreciation of fresh produce.

Sargent said: “It is fantastic to think that at least two-thirds of the country’s primary schools are now growing crops of fruit and vegetables. It is important that we build on this and link in the nutritional benefits that a fresh 5 A DAY has on our health and wellbeing.”

The Republic’s national finances would also benefit from more people eating fruit and vegetables, “given that our obesity problem is currently costing the state over €4bn a year”, he added.

Meanwhile, an eat-more-strawberries campaign has been launched by the Irish Soft Fruit Growers’ Association as the season reaches its peak.

Irish strawberry sales in 2007 reached €46m, a 25 per cent increase on the previous year, and 2008 looks set to be even better, according to association’s spokesman Gary McCarthy. “We are expecting as bumper harvest this year,” he said.

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