TITLE OF THE SCHEME School Fruit and Vegetables Scheme 2015-2016 Page 1 of 7 LEGAL BASIS 1. Council Regulation (EU) No 1370/2013 of 16 December 2013. 2. Regulation (EU) No 1308/2013 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 17 December 2013. 3. Commission Regulation (EC) No 288/2009 of 7 April 2009. BODY RESPONSIBLE FOR IMPLEMENTING THE SCHEME The Department of Agriculture at the Cypriot Ministry of Agriculture, Rural Development and Environment is the competent authority for preparing, implementing, monitoring and evaluating the scheme. The Department of Agriculture is also responsible for implementing some of the accompanying measures. The Ministry of Education and Culture is responsible for choosing the target group of pupils taking part in the scheme. The Ministry of Health is responsible for implementing some of the measures accompanying the scheme (supplying the necessary educational material) and the Cyprus Agricultural Payment Organisation is responsible for granting the aid to the beneficiaries as well as for control and imposition of sanctions. FEATURES OF THE SCHEME 1. Brief description A healthy diet is an integral part of our health and plays a vital role in reducing obesity and lowering the risk of suffering from serious conditions, such as heart disease and type 2 diabetes. Studies show that good nutritional habits are created in childhood and consequently people who eat fruit and vegetables during childhood continue to eat them as adults too. With rates of childhood obesity rising rapidly and the amount of fruit and vegetables children eat going down, the need to readjust young consumers eating habits is now considered necessary. For these reasons, Council Regulation (EU) No 1370/2013 determining measures on fixing certain aids and refunds related to the common organisation of the markets in agricultural products has provided for Community aid to be granted for the implementation of a co-financed School Fruit and Vegetables Scheme for children attending recognised educational institutions. The ultimate objective of the School Fruit and Vegetables Scheme is to tackle child obesity and increase consumption of fruit and vegetables. 2. Implementation areas In its seventh year the scheme will be implemented in all public and private primary schools and in public and communal nurseries in the Republic of Cyprus that have registered. It will cover approximately 65 000 pupils in 620 primary schools and nurseries. 3. Implementation period The current scheme covers the 2015-2016 academic year. For the following years the scheme will be reviewed based on the results and experience gained and on the funding sources available.
Page 2 of 7 PURPOSE OF THE SCHEME The purpose of the scheme is to: 1. encourage children to eat more fruit and vegetables; 2. fight child obesity; 3. introduce children to good eating habits at an early age. AIMS OF THE SCHEME By implementing the scheme we expect to achieve the following: 1. The decreasing consumption of fruit and vegetables will be reversed by encouraging children and, by extension, adults to eat more fruit and vegetables. 2. By encouraging children to eat more fruit and vegetables, the proportion of fruit and vegetables in children s diets will steadily increase to the point where their eating habits will change. 3. By consuming more fruit and vegetables, children s eating habits will improve and as a consequence the rates of child obesity will decrease. 4. The aims of the Common Agricultural Policy will also be met by increasing fruit and vegetable consumption, including boosting income in the agricultural sector, stabilising markets and safeguarding current and future supplies. GENERAL FRAMEWORK FOR IMPLEMENTING THE SCHEME The School Fruit and Vegetables Scheme was prepared by drawing on the experience gained from implementing the scheme over the past six school years and the lessons learned from dealing with the difficulties and problems that arose in particular during the 2012-2013 academic year. Schemes applied by other EU Member States, which make fruit and vegetables available to schools autonomously, were examined (e.g. Belgium, the Netherlands, Slovenia). The scheme may be implemented only in public/communal nurseries and in public and private primary schools. Ages of pupils range from 3 to 12. Applications must be submitted by the school management, with the approval of the appropriate school board (except in the case of private primary schools for which such an approval is not required). If the parents association or other stakeholders wish to contribute to implementing the scheme, this must be indicated in the application. The quality of the fruit and vegetables supplied to schools must meet the specifications of at least Category I, in accordance with the quality specifications of the European Union or the United Nations. The philosophy of the new School Fruit and Vegetables Scheme is that the educational establishments select themselves: - the suppliers of the fruit and vegetables; - the way in which the fruit and vegetables are distributed; and - the accompanying measures they wish to apply. HOW THE SCHEME WILL BE IMPLEMENTED 1. Scheme beneficiaries: School management Educational establishments intending to take part in the School Fruit and Vegetables Scheme must fill in and submit an application within a prescribed time frame.
Page 3 of 7 2. Eligible measures 2.1. Distribution of fruit and vegetables: The purchase price of the fruit and vegetables for the purpose of applying the scheme. The beneficiary undertakes the entire procedure from purchase to distribution of the fruit and vegetables to all the children in the school, including preparing (washing) the fruit and vegetables. It is recommended that, where feasible, the fruit and vegetables purchased include organic products. The list of eligible fruit and vegetables can be found in Annex I. 2.2. Related costs, i.e. costs that are directly linked to the implementation of the scheme in schools and include: costs relating to the monitoring and evaluation referred to in Article 12 of Regulation (EC) No 288/2009, directly linked to the School Fruit and Vegetables Scheme; communication costs, as referred to in Article 5(1)(b)(iii) of Regulation (EC) No 288/2009; costs for the accompanying measures referred to in Article 23(1)(b) of Regulation (EU) No 1308/2013, and particularly costs referred to in Article 5(1)(b)(iv) of Regulation (EC) No 288/2009. AMOUNT OF AID The maximum aid for the 2015-2016 academic year is 430 000, of which 290 000 constitutes Community aid and the remaining 140 000 comes from national resources. AWARD PROCEDURE Aid is granted once the applications and necessary supporting documents (invoices etc.) have been submitted and once the necessary checks have been carried out by the competent authority. The applications for aid for the supply of fruit and vegetables must include the quantities distributed both overall and per grant, and the number of children attending each primary school and nursery. In addition, in the aid application, applicants will be undertaking the following commitments in writing vis-à-vis the competent authority: 1. to use the products financed under the School Fruit and Vegetables Scheme for consumption by the children attending the educational establishment(s) requesting the aid; 2. to repay any aid unduly paid for the quantities concerned, if it is found that these products have not been distributed to the children referred to or the aid has been paid for products that are not eligible; 3. in the event of fraud or serious negligence, to pay an amount equal to the difference between the amount initially paid and the amount to which the applicant is entitled; 4. to make available to the competent authorities all the supporting documents requested; 5. to submit to any checks decided on by the competent authority, in particular the scrutiny of records and physical inspection. Further details on the implementation of the scheme and all necessary application forms will be included in an information leaflet. ACCOMPANYING MEASURES Beneficiaries must declare at least one accompanying measure, to be implemented throughout the school year. The list of accompanying measures (Annex II) is annexed to the application for participation. In order to improve the effectiveness of the scheme, the Department of Agriculture and the Ministry of Health will implement the following accompanying measures:
Page 4 of 7 1. preparation and distribution of information material on fruit and vegetables; 2. events to promote the aims of the scheme in schools; 3. school competitions relating to fruit and vegetables. CONTROLS AND SANCTIONS The Cyprus Agricultural Payments Organisation will monitor the implementation of the scheme and impose sanctions in the event of failure to comply with EU regulations. The above checks and sanctions will be applied under Articles 13 and 16(3) of Regulation (EC) No 288/2009. MONITORING AND EVALUATION The Department of Agriculture will monitor and evaluate the School Fruit and Vegetables Scheme on an annual basis, in accordance with Article 12 of Regulation (EC) No 288/2009. PRACTICAL IMPLEMENTATION PROCEDURES FOR THE SCHEME Stage 1 Once they have taken note of the way in which the School Fruit and Vegetables Scheme is to be implemented, the school managements, in conjunction with all stakeholders (e.g. parents associations, school boards, community councils), fill in and submit, within a prescribed time frame, an application declaring their intention to take part in the scheme, along with the approval of the appropriate school board (except in the case of private primary schools for which such an approval is not required). In order for the application to be deemed valid, it must be submitted before the deadline, be completed in full, specify the names of the persons who will wash and distribute the products and indicate the accompanying measures that the school intends to implement. Stage 2 Once the Department of Agriculture has examined all the applications for participation it receives within the prescribed time frame, it sends a written letter of acceptance to the school/beneficiary together with instructions on the application. Without a letter of acceptance, grants cannot be paid. The funds available will be allocated by the competent authority based on the number of participating schools and pupils per school. Stage 3 Following written acceptance, the school/beneficiary starts to implement the School Fruit and Vegetables Scheme. Throughout the scheme, the school is responsible for the proper implementation of the scheme and for keeping a file with the dates on which fruit and vegetables are supplied to and distributed in the school and all relevant supporting documents such as invoices, receipts, etc. The file must also record the accompanying measures implemented by the educational establishment and all relevant supporting documents such as invoices, receipts, etc. Throughout the scheme, the schools will be able to purchase the fruit and vegetables from producer groups/organisations, licensed local grocers or other licensed shops selling fruit and vegetables. The fruit purchased must be of at least Category I quality, in accordance with the quality specifications of the European Union or the United Nations. The fruit and vegetables must be washed thoroughly with potable water before they are given to the children, in the home economics room for primary schools and in the kitchen for nurseries, provided all health and safety requirements are met. Hygiene checks may need to be carried out by the health services of the Ministry of Health, in consultation with the school management. Also, the persons taking part in the washing and distribution of the fruit and vegetables to the pupils could be asked to provide a health certificate.
Page 5 of 7 Stage 4 Following completion of the scheme, the school/beneficiary fills in the aid application (for payment of the approved amount) and attaches all the supporting documentation as well as a fully completed questionnaire on the implementation of the scheme. Applications must be submitted to the local District Agricultural Offices of the Department of Agriculture. The contact details of the Offices will be given to the beneficiaries along with other information following approval of their application declaring their intention to take part in the scheme.
Page 6 of 7 ANNEX I List of eligible fruit and vegetables 1. Tomatoes 2. Cucumbers 3. Bananas 4. Pears 5. Citrus fruit (oranges, mandarins, etc.) 6. Table grapes 7. Apples 8. Apricots 9. Cherries 10. Plums 11. Leaf vegetables 12. Strawberries 13. Peppers 14. Carrots 15. Watermelons 16. Melons 17. Dried grapes (Note: The management of each school/beneficiary may include any of the above eligible fruit and vegetables in each order, depending on the amount of money granted by the competent authority.)
Page 7 of 7 ANNEX II List of accompanying measures No ACCOMPANYING MEASURE 1 Educational visits aiming to connect pupils with agriculture, such as visits to agricultural holdings, farms, producer organisations, packing centres and fruit and vegetable markets 2 Creation or improvement of school vegetable garden 3 Tasting sessions, trying new flavours of fruit and vegetables 4 Measures to teach children about agriculture, healthy eating habits and environmental matters Note: - Each school/beneficiary must implement at least one accompanying measure under the 2015-2016 School Fruit and Vegetables Scheme. AM/AM ΣΧΕΔΙΟ_SFS2015_2016