Vegetable van wins health award

The not-for-profit mobile food van provides vegetables and fruit

A ground-breaking project to deliver fresh fruit and vegetables in Norfolk and Suffolk has won an award from NHS East of England.

NHS Great Yarmouth and Waveney's mobile food store and community health trainers initiatives has won a Health Enterprise East award.

The team, led by Sarah Barnes, won the prize in the "prevention and wellbeing" category for helping change behaviour.

The not-for-profit mobile food van has been running for six months.

Affordable produce

It visits areas where people are most at risk of heart attack or stroke and are most likely to eat less than one portion of fruit or vegetables a day.

Its produce is affordable to people in the area and is freshly stocked each day.

Ms Barnes said: "We were delighted to pick up the award as we're really proud of the mobile fruit and vegetable store.

"It's not our business to sell fruit and veg, but it is our business to change behaviour -and this is exactly what the mobile food store does.

"We are extremely grateful to our partners McCarthys, who provide the van and stock. Without them, this exciting project would simply not have been possible."

As well as winning the award, the team were handed a cheque for £2,500 towards continuing their good work.

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