Making vegetables fun was front and centre at this year's Little Food Festival, where hands-on activities and interactive experiences helped children build positive connections with fresh food from an early age.
The Little Food Festival is Australia's first food festival created especially for kids — a free community event designed to promote health, wellbeing and food system education through fun and play. Held at Fed Square in the heart (or belly) of Melbourne on 15–16 April, the festival is now in its eighth year. Rijk Zwaan supported the event through its Veggies First initiative, which focuses on increasing vegetable consumption by making vegetables more appealing, accessible and enjoyable.
© Rijk Zwaan
Veggies First ambassadors were on-site, delivering free, hands-on activities that shared simple, practical ways to help children enjoy more vegetables. Fresh vegetable snacks were supplied by Rijk Zwaan's growing partners, including Flavorite and Harvest Moon.
"Events like the Little Food Festival show how impactful early, positive experiences with vegetables can be," said Param Turna, Client Manager at Rijk Zwaan Australia. "When children are engaged in a fun, hands-on way, it helps build lasting connections with
© Rijk Zwaan vegetables."
The festival brought together families, educators and industry partners for two days of interactive, veggie-focused activities — all designed to make vegetables more approachable, engaging and fun for young audiences, with a vibrant program including appearances from Costa Georgiadis, Alice Zaslavsky and Thanh Truong.
At a time when vegetable consumption remains well below recommended levels, initiatives like the Little Food Festival and Veggies First play an important role in breaking down barriers early. By giving children the opportunity to explore, taste and interact with vegetables in a relaxed environment, the festival helps build familiarity and confidence — key drivers of long-term behaviour change.
© Rijk Zwaan
Increasing vegetable consumption is not only critical for improving public health outcomes, but also for supporting the long-term sustainability of Australia's horticulture industry, strengthening demand for fresh produce and the growers who supply it.
For more information:
Rijk Zwaan Nederland
Burgemeester Crezéelaan 40
2678 ZG De Lier
[email protected]
www.rijkzwaan.nl
