For 11-year-old Pauline Meal, eating fresh fruit and veggies is somewhat of a luxury.

The Yipirinya School year 6 student said her family only "sometimes" bought fresh produce, because it was too expensive.

"It's a big family, that's why," she said.

Pauline is among a number of students who have been learning about nutrition and how to grow fruit and vegetables as part of a program to increase access to affordable and fresh produce in Aboriginal communities.

Teacher Oliver Tuau said many families at the school couldn't afford fresh produce.

"If you're popping into the supermarkets, families are wanting to get all of these veggies, but it can actually be quite a massive expense," he said.

"But once the students get an idea of how easy it is to grow their own veggies and flowers and all that stuff, they get a bit more excited and we're getting a bit more engagement."

An edible solution

The EON Foundation builds edible gardens in remote Aboriginal schools and communities and uses them to teach health and nutrition with the aim of reducing preventable and chronic diseases.

The foundation  was established in 2005 in response to the Telethon Institute for Child Health Research's investigation into Aboriginal Child Health in WA. 

It has been running the program in the Northern Territory's Top End for a few years, but it's the first time the program has been delivered in the southern Territory, at Yipirinya School and Ampilatwatja community, about 300 kilometres north-east of Alice Springs.

Cardiovascular disease is the biggest single cause of death among Indigenous Australians, accounting for 30 per cent of all deaths, while Northern Territory operations manager Donna Donzow said central Australia has the highest rates of diabetes in the world.

"Ampilatwatja, that's a community of 500 people, with over 50 per cent of those with diabetes," she said.

"Yipirinya School services 17 town camps around Alice Springs, and even though they live in Alice Springs, they still suffer the same food insecurities, diabetes, heart disease, middle ear infections — all that through poor nutrition."

Food too expensive and not fresh

Ms Donzow said produce was often low quality in remote community stores, because it could take up to two weeks to be delivered.

"The nutrient content of [fruit and vegetables] is low. The cost of it is high," she said.

"If you have people living in your house, and on average an Aboriginal home has between 10 and 20 people living in it, the cost to feed everyone is through the roof.

"So it's a high carb diet that gets fed because processed foods are a lot cheaper than fresh produce."

In Ampilatwatja, a four pack of kiwifruit costs $5.70, whereas major supermarkets sell the same amount online for $4 or less.

A stew pack with a brown onion, two potatoes, quarter of broccoli and pumpkin is $8.80 at Ampilatwatja, while a similar product can be bought online for less than $5.

Typically, fresh produce is cheaper in Alice Springs than in remote communities, but it's still generally more expensive than in metro areas.

For Yipirinya year 6 student Norman Wilson, this means his family often doesn't buy fruit and vegetables.

"We won't eat it [vegetables] if we're not at school ... we just eat meat," he said.

"If you're at home and you don't eat vegetables, you won't be healthy."

Money needed to expand program

Mr Tuau said the nutrition program should be expanded.

"It would be of real value if it was all around remote communities in Australia," he said.

Ms Donzow said currently 40 schools in the Northern Territory and Western Australia were on a waitlist for the program.

She said the foundation would love to expand the program, but it cost roughly $150,000 per year.

Twelve-year-old Nigella Scrutton also sees the long-term benefits possible from students learning how to grow their own food.

"They [families] won't need to buy any more vegetables, because they'll have it growing in their backyard."