Events & Media | 20 Oct 2025
FOODCastS Episode 5: How schools are shaping Europe’s food future
When you think about the future of food, you probably picture labs, farms, or maybe high-tech greenhouses. But what if the real transformation starts in a primary school playground?
Katerina Riviou is working with schools as ground zero for building sustainable food systems, featuring stories like school gardens, citizen science, and VR cooking.
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0Schools into “living labs”
Katerina’s team has turned schools into “living labs”—places where students don’t just learn about food, they experience it:
- Children tending school gardens and running a zero-emission canteen that reduces food waste.
- Students wearing smartwatches to track eating and exercise habits, then using real data in citizen science projects.
- Cooking classes that blend culture, history, and technology—like recreating recipes from ancient Athens with VR.
The activities help kids see food as more than calories or comfort—it’s culture, science, environment, and community. And the impact doesn’t stop at graduation. Many students inspired by these programmes are choosing careers in food science, sustainability, and public health.
The secret sauce
The secret sauce, according to Katerina? Collaboration. Schools open their doors to families, researchers, local food producers, and policymakers, creating a shared space where knowledge and innovation thrive.
And perhaps the most powerful takeaway: teaching children to value food. As Katerina put it, when young people understand where food comes from, how much effort it takes to grow, and why it matters, they’re more likely to respect it—and work to transform the system for the better.
🎧Ready to listen? Tune in to Episode 5 of FOODCastS here.👇
Speakers of this show
- Katerina Riviou is a food systems innovation, education, and youth engagement expert, known for leading the FoodSHIFT 2030 Athens Accelerator Lab and promoting open schooling/whole-school approaches in EU partnerships like FutureFoodS to build fair, healthy, and sustainable food systems.
- Florentin Ndizeye is the collaborative projects manager at EUFIC and is the host of this podcast episode.
