Next week's Europe Against Cancer Week will target primary schoolchildren's intake of fruit and vegetables.
Some 14 per cent of boys and 11 per cent of girls never eat vegetables and 8 per cent of children never eat fruit, according to the National Lifestyle Survey, commissioned by the Department of Health and Children.
Speaking at the start of the campaign, the Minister of State at the Department of Health and Children, Dr Tom Moffat, said the benefits of eating high-fibre fruit and vegetables could be linked to a reduction in the occurrence of bowel cancer.
Latest figures from the National Cancer Registry show Irish men ranked fourth and Irish women ninth for bowel cancer incidence in Europe. In total, 1,908 people developed colorectal cancer in the Republic last year.
The campaign, next week, will include distribution of information to parents on how to improve children's diets and a regional and national art competition for schoolchildren.
"We all know that childhood is the time when likes and dislikes and basic dietary habits are formed. By regularly offering children fruit and vegetables they will probably be more inclined to include them in their diets during adolescence and adulthood," Dr Moffat said.
Dr Michael Moriarity, consultant radiotherapist and clinical oncologist, said bowel cancer was the second most common cancer in the Republic, behind skin cancer, but the cure rate was 90 per cent when detected and treated early.
Previous campaigns had emphasised what people should avoid, but this campaign encouraged people to eat more fruit and vegetables.
"The emphasis is not on low-fat food or avoiding things in the diet. It is stressing the positive rather than avoiding certain food," he said.