Minister for Public Health and Well Being Hildegarde Naughton joined Agri Aware at Bord Bia’s Bloom in the Phoenix Park to announce exciting news.
Minister Naughton was delighted to announce further support for Agri Aware’s longest standing programme, Incredible Edibles at Bloom with substantial commitment from Healthy Ireland set to greatly increase the uptake in numbers across schools as well as increasing the quality of the delivery of the programme.
Minister Naughton said: “I am delighted to attend Bloom on this (sunny) bank holiday weekend and to announce further support for the Incredible Edibles programme in its efforts to equip children with the tools they need to make healthy food choices.
Incredible Edibles is a fantastic initiative which educates primary school children on eating and growing fruit and vegetables, laying the foundations for a lifetime of healthy eating.
“This multi-agency programme has far-reaching positive impacts on children all around the country and it is wonderful to see it grow from strength to strength.
“Supported by Healthy Ireland, it is helping to advance the Programme for Government’s commitment to ensure all children have access to a nutritious diet and is one of the many positive initiatives that are being implemented from the ten-year obesity policy and action plan (OPAP).”
Incredible Edibles is in its sixteenth year and this year alone saw 80,000 students take part in the programme across the country – up from 76,000 students that participated in 2022.
Throughout its lifespan, the Incredible Edibles programme has directly impacted 800,000 students and Agri Aware is delighted that more funding has been granted to continue to grow the programme and continue making it the success it is.
This year at Bloom, over 1,100 primary school students from 48 different schools across the country – that are taking part in the Incredible Edibles programme – attended. They enjoyed a tour of the farmyard, which featured beef cattle, a dairy cow, and sheep.
Speaking on the announcement of further funding being granted for the Incredible Edibles programme, Agri Aware Executive Director, Marcus O’Halloran said: “We are delighted to get the further support from Minister Naughton for the Incredible Edibles programme.
“Healthy Ireland is one of the lead sponsors of the programme that continues to grow year after year.
“The further support announced by the minister will help to expand the offerings within the programme and continue to impact students directly across the country.
“This programme wouldn’t be possible without the support and the help of all our Incredible Edibles sponsors.”
This year’s programme is coming to an end but will live long in the memory for many reasons. One being that it saw the biggest and most successful Healthy Eating Week in its lifetime, with the Agri Aware team going on a roadshow to schools in four different counties highlighting the benefits of a balanced healthy diet.
This year also saw Agri Aware bring Healthy Eating Week virtually through interactive webinars in schools countrywide.