10-year-olds Renae Wanahi (left) and and Shanaia Hauraki make a purini huarakau (fruit salad) for the Feeding our Futures gathering.
More than 50 guests were invited to attend the party where they were treated to healthy and nutritional food made by youth.
Feeding Our Futures co-ordinator Jenny White was granted funding from the Ministry of Health and Otago District Health Board to run the six-week programme that encouraged healthy habits in youngsters.
The Feeding Our Futures programme took the marae 12 weeks to complete, in order to allow for a funeral, sickness, and other commitments of the community.
‘‘We fitted in around the community and around what was happening with whanau,'' she said.
Parents took turns helping supervise children at the marae, teaching them how to use knives safely to cut their vegetables and how to cook food properly.
The Mataura Marae transformed into a firstclass restaurant with a la carte settings on all the tables and children spreading out a smorgasbord of nutritional food for their guests.
With plenty of food left over after the dinner, children ensured the leftovers were not wasted and that all the rubbish that could be recycled was.
