Over 30,000 Students from 1,500 Classes Enrolled in the 15th Edition of Fruit Heroes

In the 2025/2026 school year, the project “Heróis da Fruta” returns to Portuguese schools to continue promoting healthier eating habits among children. Free registrations for the 15th edition of this initiative by the Portuguese Association Against Childhood Obesity (APCOI), which for the first time has BNP Paribas Cardif as the main sponsor, run until October 31 here, as disclosed in a press release.

According to the same source, since its launch in 2011, the “Heróis da Fruta” program has already involved more than 1 million children across the country, having achieved significant improvements in their daily eating habits. For the 2025/2026 edition, 30,179 students in 1,538 classes, distributed across all districts and autonomous regions, have already secured their participation.

Proven results: more fruit, more health

Public health specialists underscore the importance of programs like the school challenge “Heróis da Fruta” to tackle rising challenges such as child malnutrition and low food literacy among families. This project, created by APCOI in 2011, has demonstrated consistent and measurable results over the years.

Glória Ferreira, Director of Human Resources, Communication and Corporate Social Responsibility of BNP Paribas Cardif Iberia, the new main partner of this APCOI initiative, notes that “as a global specialist in personal insurance, BNP Paribas Cardif is proud to contribute to the advancement of scientific research and to the prevention of obesity, a health issue affecting an increasing proportion of the population worldwide.” Since 2021, through the international program My Food My Future which supports projects promoting healthy lifestyles, BNP Paribas Cardif has already benefited 650,000 children in 13 countries — numbers now joined by the impact of the Heróis da Fruta program in Portugal.”

According to the impact report from ISAMB/FMUL (Institute of Environmental Health of the Faculty of Medicine of the University of Lisbon), the “Heróis da Fruta” program increased, on average, the intake of healthier school snacks in participating classes by 22.6%. In addition, 52.8% of children tried for the first time a new fruit or vegetable, reinforcing the program’s effectiveness as a health education and food literacy tool.

Mário Silva, president of APCOI, states that “it is with great enthusiasm that we welcome BNP Paribas Cardif as the Main Partner of the ‘Heróis da Fruta’ challenge, which since 2011 has already guaranteed the intake of more than 5 thousand tons of fruit and vegetables in over 10 thousand schools that have participated in this initiative. This partnership is essential for us to continue offering this educational project to more children at no cost, inspiring transformative habits for their eating and resulting in very positive health impacts.”

Historic edition: guaranteed prizes for all participating children

In this 15th edition, all classes that complete the 5-week challenge will receive guaranteed participation prizes, eliminating the traditional prize draw. Each student and teacher will receive a diploma, “Heróis da Fruta” stickers, and a family voucher pack with free entries to educational and leisure experiences. The classes will also have access to the “Missão Cumprida” (Mission Accomplished) flag, the book-game Heróis da Fruta, seeds to plant in the school garden, and an invitation to participate online in the official prize-giving ceremony, featuring the mascots Sushi, Yoga and Tuktuk.

Registrations open until October 31

Preschool and primary school classes, whether from public or private schools, including kindergartens, ATL, CATL, AAF and school clusters nationwide, including Madeira and the Azores, can participate. The methodology combines music, storytelling and gamification, led by model characters who gain “superpowers” through the intake of healthy foods, in line with the recommendations of the WHO, DGS and DGE.

Classes and Students registered up to 15/10/2025 by District:

Registrations for the 15th edition of APCOI’s school challenge “Heróis da Fruta,” with BNP Paribas Cardif as the main sponsor, are open until October 31, 2025 at heroisdafruta.com/inscricoes2025