Please tell us your ideas for getting children to eat more fruit - you could win £250 in supermarket vouchers

[HelenMumsnet]

Hello.

Do your children like fruit? Do they eat all sorts - or just the regulation daily banana?

ZESPRI Kiwifruit would love to hear your ideas for getting children to eat more fruit - whether your kids only just manage their five a day or are such fruit fiends, they could tell a kiwi from a kumquat at 40 paces.

Everyone who sends in an idea, tip or suggestion will be entered into a prize draw to win £250 in vouchers for a supermarket of their choice.*

Please note that your tips may be published on Mumsnet at a later date.

Thanks and good luck! MNHQ

*Participating supermarkets include Tesco, Asda, Sainsburys, Morrison, M&S and Waitrose

add fruit to jelly.

Blindfold taste test game, they might find they like fruit that they didn't initially like the look of.

Fruit kebabs. In the summer freezing some fruit on sticks or combining with juice for healthier lollies.
Getting children involved in making their own fruit punch or juice.

Eat it yourself when they are under 18 months. Mine wanted anything I ate and it gets them in the habit.

Puree fruit - almost any will work except bananas. Freeze into lollies!

Make a score card/ spotters guide type thing where they get to tick off fruit, bonus points for more exotic fruit etc.

My DS will eat anything, and loves fruit.

He loves to go to a local farm shop that is small and friendly enough that he can roam around and talk about all the different things on sale then buy one apple of each type, different colour tomatoes etc, then we sit and share them. It's nice to talk about where they come from too - in our case we could walk to many of the local food farms

Use fruitchopped up for a snack option. It's amzing how often xxxx fruit or nothing produces a fruit answer at snack time.

Definately fruit kebabs. Let them choose and help you chop, then build up nice colours on the skewer. Also make one for daddy. Try taking the fruit off the skewer in case they try a sword swallowing imitation.

And monkey see, monkey do. Have a bowl of fresh, washed fruit easy to hand. Get into the habit of nibbling as you go by and ther will copy.

Whilst on holiday, where there is an eat as much as you like breakfast buffet, I tell my children they can eat unlimited pancakes, bacon and muffins provided they have eaten two pieces of fruit first.

To be fair, this won't work on a day to day basis but I am all for a bit of bribery reward.

link it to school topics, eg for romans get them to find out what they had eg grapes figs etc and go out together to buy them...I should get back to work and stop being so geeky.

Fruit smoothies always go down very well with my two. Smoothies are also a very good way of using up bananas, pears and other fruit that may have ripened a bit too much.

I tell DD that fruit makes her pretty. That's a good incentive for eating it, in her book .

Pauline beat me to fruit kebabs... definitely a good one.

Growing ones own does add to the appeal, we have apples, plums, and various soft fruit....

Mine will eat any fruit, but love it even more when it becomes "pudding" with a small spoon of natural yogurt...

Fruit bowl always available and if we have grapes or strawbs in the fridge I let them have a "treat" of helping themselves to them...

Squeeze juice or make smoothies then freeze as ice lollies.

I encourage my children to eat fruit as and when they like.

Ideas to get fruit into children for me would be to add apples, mandarins, grapefruit etc to green salads.
Juice fruit and make into ice lollies and fruit ice cubes for drinks on hot days.
Blindfold them and ask them to guess which fruit when eating it.
Fresh fruit kebabs (with or without a light chocolate dipping sauce)
Fruit breads such as banana bread, pear bread etc.
Including the children in making of meals that include fruit, involving them raises their interest and its fun to sample the ingredients along the way.
Mix fruit into yogurt/ice cream/jelly etc.
Make fruit smoothies with the children and let them experiment with different flavour combinations (favourite here is banana & honey)
Baked bananas are great with ice cream, butterscotch sauce and chopped nuts(pancakes are great with this too)

They love homemade carrot soup, and so I often put an apple in it.

I give them kiwis in a (novelty ) eggcup, with the top cut off and a teaspoon to eat it with. They think this is really funny. Also saves peeling them...

Grow our own greengages, blackcurrants, gooseberries etc and get the kids involved in the process, they had their own strawberry plants last year too.

Keep frozen fruit in the freezer, eg. frozen rasps. Put some in the bottom of a small pot and top up with natural yoghurt for packed lunch. By lunchtime the fruit will have defrosted. Also use frozen fruit to make a quick warm sauce for icecream.

Trips to pick your own farms - they love picking (and also tend to eat loads in the process)

I tell DS that if he eats lots of yummy fruit it will make him big and strong like Daddy and Fireman Sam.

Never ask if they want grapes, pear etc - just produce it.

Fruit salad in a bowl so they can help themselves to it.

Ice lollies - DD will eat anything in the guise of one of these!

Buying from a market stall - and letting them choose.

Peer pressure - DD eats more at nursery, with her friends at her childminder etc.

Let them help prepare the fruit! My children are much more likely to eat something that they have helped to make. Let them chop the fruit and put it on kebab skewers.

Also let them choose the fruit at the supermarket, ask them if they wouldl ike to try this new fruit, get them excited about what they can eat!

I persuaded my son to try a clementine by arranging the segments in the shape of a funny face.

Prepared fruit for pudding usually meets with no resistance if there is no alternative!

Provide a plate of chopped up fruit before a meal, when they are really hungry.

Tell them they can't have any treats in their school lunch box if they don't eat the fruit and veg in there.

Always include fruit in meals as an expectation, whether or not they eat it, it's there on the table.

chop it into porridge or cereal or yoghurt for breakfast.