Helping children explore school meals with curiosity: EDUFOOD BSR launches in Daugavpils

On 29 and 30 July 2026, Daugavpils University hosted the kick-off event of EDUFOOD BSR, a project co-funded by the European Union through the Interreg Baltic Sea Region Programme 2021–2027. Partners from Latvia, Estonia and Lithuania began working together to improve school food services through the SAPERE sensory food education method.

Project #S040, “Educational Food Innovation for Healthier Habits and a Greener Baltic Sea Region” (EDUFOOD BSR), addresses a practical question in the everyday life of schools: how can children be helped to accept healthier and more varied meals when unfamiliar foods may initially seem unappealing?

Why sensory food education matters

This question is particularly relevant in primary schools. Pupils in Grades 1–4 often need time, repeated positive experiences and adult support to become comfortable with new tastes, smells, foods and dishes. When children are unfamiliar with a food or do not understand its smell, taste, texture or appearance, it often remains uneaten.

For schools and municipalities, this presents a broader challenge: how can school meals be made more familiar, understandable and acceptable to children while also reducing food waste?

At the heart of EDUFOOD BSR is the SAPERE method, a sensory food education approach that helps children explore food through sight, smell, touch, hearing and taste. The purpose is not to persuade children to “eat everything”, but to create a safe environment that encourages curiosity. Children are given the freedom to explore food, compare sensations, describe their experiences, ask questions and gradually become more open to unfamiliar flavours.

Experiencing SAPERE first-hand

During the kick-off event at Daugavpils University, the partners discussed the project work plan and experienced the SAPERE method first-hand.

The practical masterclass was led by representatives of The Association of Municipalities of Tartu County and the associated organisation MTÜ Meelte Kool (School of the Senses), which provides methodological guidance on SAPERE within the project.

The sensory exercises encouraged participants to view school meals from a child’s perspective—not only in terms of nutrients or menus, but as an experience shaped by smell, colour, texture, sound, atmosphere and conversations at the table.

From pilot activities to a transnational toolkit

Municipalities and schools need practical tools and cooperation models that help children accept new foods while reducing food waste. During the project, the SAPERE method will therefore be adapted to the needs of schools and municipalities in Latvia, Estonia and Lithuania.

The planned activities include SAPERE training for teachers and cooks, pilot implementation in schools, comparative analysis of the pilot results, and the preparation of practical recommendations for schools and municipalities.

The project’s contribution will extend beyond individual classroom activities. EDUFOOD BSR will help strengthen cooperation among the people and organisations that shape children’s everyday eating experiences at school—teachers, cooks, catering providers, school leaders and municipal specialists.

This cooperation is important because school catering is not merely a technical service. It is part of children’s daily lives, health, habits and attitudes towards food.

By the end of the project, the partnership will develop a Transnational SAPERE Toolkit for Municipalities in three languages. The toolkit will bring together methods tested during the project, practical examples and recommendations for improving school food systems.

It will be designed for use by municipalities, schools and public service providers across the Baltic Sea Region, helping to make school food services more responsive, educational and sustainable.

A partnership across three countries

The EDUFOOD BSR partnership comprises Daugavpils University, The Association of Municipalities of Tartu County, The Municipality of Ludza County, Klaipeda University and The Association “Klaipeda Region”. Daugavpils University is the project’s lead partner.

The partnership brings together the experience of universities, municipalities and regional organisations to transfer and adapt the SAPERE approach to the everyday context of school food services in the Baltic States.

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