Tesco has announced the expansion of its national Fruit & Veg for Schools programme, pledging to work with 500 schools in 2025 and 2026.
This is a substantial increase on last year, when the supermarket provided healthy snacks to around 140,000 children across 400 schools.
The scheme will allow participating schools to pop into their local Tesco to pick up fresh produce for pupils, free of charge.
Created in partnership with the British Nutrition Foundation, the programme forms part of Tesco's Stronger Starts funding.
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It focuses on schools where more than half of the pupils get free school meals, as lower-income families are more likely to struggle to afford a healthy diet.
The aim is to provide select children with a "nutritious boost they might not ordinarily get".
Data suggests that just 12 per cent of kids aged 11 to 18 actually get their five-a-day, so Tesco expects the programme to make a real difference.
Overall, the supermarket predicts that children taking part will eat 23 per cent more fruit and veg as a result of the initiative.
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Tesco will work with 500 schools in its Fruit & Veg for Schools programme
|TESCO
In its first year, Tesco's Fruit & Veg for Schools programme proved popular among little ones.
Apples emerged as the top pick, with schools collecting more than 225,000kg of them, followed by bananas (108,602kg) and oranges (92,597kg). Grapes and strawberries rounded out the top five favourites.
With local Tesco stores providing the produce, schools can choose what works best for their pupils.
And as the programme will run for the entire academic year, thousands more children will get the fresh produce they need.
Tesco UK CEO Ashwin Prasad commented: "Schools have told us what a positive impact the Tesco Fruit and Veg for Schools programme has made on their children, so we are delighted we can support even more schools in year two.
'Schools have told us what a positive impact the programme has made on their children'
|GETTY
"The first year of our programme has been a huge success, and by expanding it, we can ensure that even more young people in some of the most challenged communities in the UK get access to more fruit and veg."
Chief executive of the British Nutrition Foundation, Elaine Hinda, added: "Tesco's Fruit & Veg for Schools programme has helped to improve the diets of our young people by helping them get more of their five a day, try new varieties, and develop healthy habits that we hope will stay with them through life.
"We're delighted to see the programme expanded to provide daily fruit and vegetables to even more children who might not normally be able to access them."
Astral Blanchard, head teacher at Twerton Infant School in Bath, commented on the programme's positive impact.
"The Tesco Fruit & Veg for Schools programme has given our children the opportunity to try so many new fruit and vegetables, while also helping us build healthy eating into a valuable part of our daily routine," she said.
"Snack time is now a calm and enjoyable moment where we read stories, talk about flavours, and explore new tastes together in ways we hadn't before.
"Children are helping to prepare the fruit, trying things they've never eaten, and even asking for fruit and vegetables at home.
"It has been a joy to see their curiosity grow and their enthusiasm for healthy eating thrive."