Mr Fruitness, a big hit at Fruit Logistica 2011

Over 2,000 freebies distributed in the Piazza Italia pavilion for the Fruitness Enjoy It! campaign, which is promoting consumption of peaches and nectarines, pears, kiwifruit and plums among European youngsters
Berlin was recently treated to a guest appearance by Mr Fruitness, the superhero in the green leotard created to promote fruit consumption and fight childhood obesity among European youngsters in Austria, Germany, Poland, Sweden and the UK. The character, created as part of the "Fruitness - Enjoy it!" project which is financed by the European Union, the Italian Government and CSO Centro Servizi Ortofrutticoli, came to life in the exhibition halls of Fruit Logistica, the international trade fair for fruit and vegetable marketing which took place from 9 to 11 February in the German capital.

The real-life Mr Fruitness took on the role of interviewer to elicit the views of fruit and vegetable operators who stopped by the Piazza Italia pavilion at Fruit Logistica. Visitors were able to share their opinions on camera and talk about the peculiarities of fruit for a special web TV feature. The superhero even distributed refreshing fruit bites from the two kiosks dedicated to the project inside the Italian pavilion. And there was great interest in the Mr Fruitness giveaways on offer at the Berlin event: over the course of the three-day fair, over 2,000 freebies were handed out including towelettes, mini agendas, mini cards and board games. Numerous visitors also stopped to have their picture taken with the superhero, whose presence aroused a great deal of curiosity among the professionals in attendance at Fruit Logistica.
Since 2006, the "Fruitness, Enjoy It!" has championed healthy lifestyles, educating children and teenagers in Austria, Germany, Poland, Sweden and the UK about the important nutritional properties of peaches and nectarines, pears, kiwifruit and plums.

In September 2009, following the success of the first three-year period, funding for the "Fruitness, Enjoy It!" project was extended for another three years to 2012. For almost the last five years the Mr Fruitness campaign has promoted fruit consumption by means of workshops, in-store promotions with leading retail chains in Austria, Germany, Poland, Sweden and the UK, in-school initiatives and information materials both on and offline, including the dedicated website www.fruitness.eu. These initiatives have amassed an estimated total of over 60 million contacts.