Fruit machines hit kids with fresh fruits,seasonal items.

HERE is how to get children to eat fruit: Install vending machines.

Currently sited in about 20 schools, fruit vending machines are such a hit among students that the company behind them plans to bring the total number of participating schools to 60 by the end of this year.

Principals and the Health Promotion Board (HPB) say the appeal of machine-dispensed fruit lies in the attractive packaging it comes in.

For a dollar, students get diced and chilled fruit placed in a plastic cup which comes with a plastic fork.

The machines sell six types of fruit cups, including one with mixed fruit.

Seasonal fruits such as mangos and cherry tomatoes are offered when available.

HPB deputy director of youth health programme development Wong Mun Loke said such machines are a new way of getting the young to eat fruit: 'This new approach may pique their curiosity and create a greater interest in fruit consumption among the young.'

Homegrown company Geok Heng Enterprise first introduced the machines in late 2007 in industrial parks, schools and hospitals. It currently has 40 machines stationed all over Singapore.

Sales manager Irence Lim said that out of all the locations, the machines are especially popular in schools, where demand is so high that some schools require the machines to be re-stocked twice a day. Each machine can hold up to 180 cups at a time.