IF THERE'S one resolution which should be on every family's list this New Year, it ought to be eating together more often.

A survey for The Food Foundation has revealed that 80 per cent of families in the North West sit down together for a family meal only once a week or less.

(The survey classed a family meal as one comprising members of at least two generations of a family sitting down together for a home-cooked meal in the home.)

The only ray of light in the survey came from the traditional Sunday lunch which, for nearly three-quarters of respondents, was the most popular occasion for a weekly meal among those families who do eat together once a week.

The survey was commissioned by the food company Baxters on behalf of The Food Foundation, a registered charity established to advance the education and awareness of the public, in particular young people, about the benefits of sound nutrition, food safety, cooking and other food skills.

The theme of the foundation's latest campaign is 'Cooking Together'.

Foundation trustee Tony de Angeli said that modern lifestyles meant that families were not as close as in the past.

"However, food has always been the best excuse for getting people together and talking to each other," he argued.

"If families never eat together the inevitable consequence is poorer communcation between the generations."

The national results of the survey were:

* 15 per cent of families in the UK sit down together for a meal at home on a daily basis.

* 24 per cent are likely to do so more than once a week.

* 27 per cent of children aged between six and 16 eat together with their families every day.

* 41 per cent of children eat together with their families once a month or less.

* 72 per cent said a traditional Sunday lunch was the most popular occasion for a weekly meal among those families who eat together once a week.