TALKING vegetables are being used to encourage youngsters to eat their greens.

Thousands of primary school children are to receive visits from the likes of Billy Broccoli, Sally Swede, Colin Carrot and Casper Cabbage.

Run by a health promotion team at the University Hospital of North Tees, Stockton, the walking, talking vegetables are visiting school breakfast clubs, assembles and over lunchtimes.

Gloria Pearson, Stockton healthy school programme co-ordinator, said recruiting the Veggie-Gang was thought an effective way of getting a healthy eating message across to small children.

"It is just a fun and exciting way of reinforcing the message to eat five portions of fruit and vegetables a day.

Since children in some schools will have a healthy eating message at lunchtime and if they have chosen vegetables, it's quite nice for the vegetable to go along and reward them."

Seven Stockton primary schools have so far signed up for the promotion and have received special funding from the local Health Action Zone and the Children's Fund.

Each school has events and activities planned around a health eating message.

Supermarkets are being enlisted for their help in having fruit and vegetable tasting sessions in store and helping in technology classes.