About.

Food, it’s more than just a necessity

Food is one of the greatest levers to bring about positive health and environmental outcomes. With the biggest gap, and therefore opportunity, being planetary health and food systems education.  

We believe, if we can connect kids with the food system, we can help them create a healthier future for themselves and the planet.

To help achieve this, the Sandro Demaio Foundation is proud to present the Little Food Festival together with a team of founding partners.

SDF’s flagship event, Little Food Festival, is a celebration of possibility – two vibrant days of hands-on activities to spark curiosity and excitement about the entire food system.

A free community event, the Little Food Festival promotes health, wellbeing and sustainability education, focused on the food system.

Going into its 8th year, the festival captivates and empowers kids and their families, through fun and play, to help them make better choices that address the intersecting problems of health and sustainability. 

Our mission

Create long-term positive social and environmental impact by putting the fun back into real food, transforming our food system, connecting cultures and growing a healthy future generation and planet.

our guiding principles

  1. We recognise everyone has a right to healthy, sustainable, affordable and culturally appropriate foods.

  2. We aspire to be a socially inclusive, free to attend, culturally diverse and zero-waste event.

The Sandro Demaio Foundation

Established in 2018, the Sandro Demaio Foundation (SDF) is a not for profit charity that enables young people and their families to take action towards a fairer, healthier and more sustainable food system.

We bring together like-minded personalities, community organisations, NFPs, government and philanthropic supporters who actively want to help build a healthier, vibrant and more resilient population and planet. 

 
 

"When kids fall in love with the magic of food – how it’s grown, prepared and shared – they grow up ready to care for it, protect it, and champion it.

And what we teach kids about good food, the food system and the environment today, creates the building blocks for what their food habits will look like in the future. This is why we created the Little Food Festival”.

— Dr Sandro Demaio, Founder

 
 

2025 Festival highlights

12,000+ kids and families in attendance

  • 40+ workshops, activations and performances

  • 95,000+ people reached via social media 

  • 22,000+ visits to the Little Food Festival website

  • 46,000+ subscribers reached via eDMs 

  • 7.9+ million people reached through PR

  • $310,000+ in advertising value achieved

  • Saved 4,417 single use plates, cups and bowls from landfill 

  • Diverted 160 kg of waste from landfill

  • 100% positive social sentiment

  • 98% said they would return in 2026

  • 98% of attendees said they greatly enjoyed the Festival.

 

Across the past 7 years, we’ve deeply engaged and impacted over 50k kids and their families at Melbourne’s iconic Federation Square and have reached hundreds of thousands more through our online programs, social media and PR.

 

How we do it

Captivate

We captivate kids to explore and understand the food system which improves health and environmental literacy.

The Little Food Festival connects the dots across how food is grown, processed, moved, purchased, cooked, eaten and re-used so they can make choices that nourish their health and the planet. 

empower

We empower kids to become agents of change.

By planting a seed in their heart and minds that, each day, they have the power to make healthy choices for themselves, their community and the planet through good food.