Less Waste, More Taste: Helping Kids Explore New Foods
Thursday, April 23 from 4:00 PM - 4:45 PM EST | Live on Zoom | Free Registration
What if trying new foods was something kids could learn?
If you’re seeing food get thrown away or kids shut down around new foods, you’re not alone.
In this short, practical session, we’ll share a simple shift that helps children become more open to trying new foods, without pressure, so more gets eaten and less gets wasted.
You will learn...
- What the Dr. Yum Food Adventure program is all about.
- Why trying new foods is a developmental skill (not just “picky eating”)
- How to approach feeding the same way we approach learning to read—with practice, support, and repetition
- A simple, classroom-ready strategy that builds food curiosity
- What this looks like during real meals and snacks
- How this shift can lead to less food waste over time
You Should Attend If...
- You’re seeing a lot of food getting thrown away
- You want kids to be more open to trying new foods
- You’re looking for practical strategies that fit into what you’re already doing
- You want to align classrooms and food service, and turn meals into hands-on learning moments kids actually engage in
Speaker:
Nimali Fernando, MD, MPH has been a board-certified pediatrician for over 24 years and founder of The Dr. Yum Project, a non-profit dedicated to helping families and communities overcome barriers to eating well. She is coauthor of the book”Raising a Healthy, Happy Eater” and “Dr. Yum's Food Adventure,” a research-backed nutrition curriculum that teaches kids ages 2 - 8 to enjoy whole foods in early childhood education centers and K-2 classrooms in 44 states nationwide. She is also the creator of “Touchpoints,” a family-centered health behavior program. Her “Food as Medicine” approach has been featured in the New York Times and NBC Nightly News.