Collection of Recipes for Preschool Children and Modern Training and Methodological Materials for Implementing Healthy Eating Principles

In Ukraine, about one million children attend preschool education institutions, but unlike schools, the nutrition system in kindergartens remains outside the focus of state reform. The lack of adapted recipes, limited budgets, insufficient equipment, and inadequate professional training of staff make it impossible to introduce healthy and balanced nutrition.

The full-scale war has only exacerbated these challenges. Interruptions in electricity and water supply, disrupted logistics, rising food prices, as well as psychological stress among children and their families have further worsened the quality of diets. Under these conditions, children more frequently consume foods high in sugar, salt, and saturated fats, which not only harms their health but also reinforces unhealthy eating habits.

According to the latest data from the WHO Regional Office for Europe (COSI, 2022), on average 29% of children aged 6–9 are overweight, of whom 12% are living with obesity. Ukrainian data confirm a similar trend: in the 2023–2024 COSI round, 23% of children aged 6–9 were overweight and 9% had obesity, according to the study supported by the Swiss-Ukrainian project “Act for Health”. WHO reports emphasize that it is at an early age that a culture of healthy eating should be formed as a key preventive strategy against noncommunicable diseases.

Such a project is a logical continuation of national efforts in the field of child health and aligns with state priorities in combating obesity, developing human capital, and ensuring equal access to quality nutrition for all children.

Within the project, NGO “CULT FOOD” is working on the development of tools that will help preschool education institutions implement healthy eating principles in their daily work.

The project focuses on two major areas of work:

I. Development and implementation of methodological and interactive materials on healthy eating for educators working with preschool children.

II. Development, testing and dissemination of a collection of recipes for organizing nutrition in preschool education institutions.

Overall, the project applies a comprehensive approach by influencing several levels simultaneously and combining several components: recipes and technological cards; interactive methodological materials; training for cooks and educators; communication support and dissemination of the developed tools to the general public.

Within the project, implementation is ensured in seven regions: Dnipropetrovsk, Lviv, Poltava, Rivne, Kherson, Khmelnytskyi and Cherkasy.

The materials developed within the project are intended to become a practical tool for preschool education institutions, educators and teams responsible for children’s nutrition.