FoodPlay Productions

05/01/2026

I'm thrilled to share that we were interviewed on "How I Built This" about the future of FoodPlay and it will be aired on NEPM (New England Public Radio) tomorrow, Saturday at 10 am! For other areas in US, check your local NPR station for the show. Or you can try to stream it anytime online, or try these Spotify or Wondery links below.

In the interview, we talk about the journey of building FoodPlay—how we’ve worked to make nutrition come alive for kids through the fun-filled power of live theater. And, Guy Raz along with Jet Blue and Breeze Airlines founder, David Neeleman gave us advice about how best to continue our mission to reach more kids with these increasingly important messages in today's world.

Hope you can catch the show and support our work, and please visit us at www.foodplay.com to learn more!

Or Stream here:
https://open.spotify.com/show/6E709HRH7XaiZrMfgtNCun
https://wondery.com/.../10386-advice-line-with-david.../

04/30/2026

I’m thrilled to share that I was just interviewed about the future of FoodPlay on the NPR Show - "How I Built This with Guy Raz"!

The segment is airing starting today, Thursday, April 30th, on your local NPR station (check your local schedule), or you can stream it anytime online. Or try these spotify and wondery links below.

In the interview, we talk about the journey of building FoodPlay—how we’ve worked to make nutrition come alive for kids through the fun-filled power of live theater. And, Guy Raz along with Jet Blue and Breeze Airlines founder, David Neeleman gave us advice about how best to continue our mission to reach more kids with these increasingly important messages in today's world.

Hope you can catch the show and support our work, and please visit us at www.foodplay.com to learn more!

https://open.spotify.com/show/6E709HRH7XaiZrMfgtNCun

https://wondery.com/shows/how-i-built-this/episode/10386-advice-line-with-david-neeleman-of-jetblue/

Live & Virtual Shows, Fun-Filled Videos, and Hands-On Resources. 10 National Awards + an EMMY! Rave Reviews – Over 5,000,000 children served!

04/29/2026

What a blast we had making nutrition come alive during our afterschool workshops with 4th and 5th graders, part of the OPMAD Afterschool Program in Hartford Public Schools! Kids jumped into the fun—acting, playing, and exploring how they can choose foods that are good for their health and the health of the planet too! We served up our own recipe of fresh strawberry shortcake which was a bit hit. And, last week we made "Veggie Grab-Bags" filled with cherry tomatoes, baby carrots, and cucumber wheels, great to bring along when you're on the run. The best advice for parents I think is to serve up fresh veggies with a dip at a time when your kids are at their hungriest...like after school or when waiting for dinner, kids will eat those veggies right up!

03/02/2026

March is National Nutrition Month and here's a list of some exciting ways to celebrate as you make healthy eating and active living - GREAT FUN for Kids - "Discover the Power of Nutrition!" Just click on the FoodPlay link below!

12/08/2025

We had a great time at the National Farm to Cafeteria Conference in Albuquerque last week and met amazing food educators from around the country! Here are some pics of our booth where we celebrated kids standing up for Mother Nature and performing in "Veggies Got Talent Show!"

12/08/2025

Nice review of our Veggies Got Talent! Activity Kit in the Journal of the Society of Nutrition Education and Behavior!

11/17/2025

So fun using puppets to promote healthy habits! Had a great time performing our first puppet show - "The Story of Sweet Potato...From Farm to Fame - a Musical!" at the Puppet Slam in Santa Fe Saturday night! It's the story of a sweet potato tween who is happy about herself and her life, until she sees a billboard for fast food French fries - the #1 Most Popular Potato in the World. They all come to life and show in the end, sweet potato is glad she doesn't have to go through the horrible steps that the fast food French fries go through in order to be popular, she is better off being..."just the way you are!"

Thanks to Charity, Jonathan, Manny, and Dave!

# HealthyEating

11/15/2025

Reminder - Today - There's going to be a Puppet Slam in Santa Fe, Hurray! This Saturday, November 15th, doors open at 6:30, Shows start at 7:00 pm. at Relay - 2873 All Trades Road. There'll be lots of short acts from creative folks around town geared for adults! I'm going to try my hand with a show I've been dreaming about for years - "The Story of Sweet Potato from Farm to Fame!" Can only do Act One, with some neat props, many of them made by Sean Hall, an amazing prop maker, and a few collaborators. Check out the poster here! See less

11/11/2025

There's going to be a Puppet Slam in Santa Fe, Hurray! This Saturday, November 15th, doors open at 6:30, Shows start at 7:00 pm. at Relay - 2873 All Trades Road. There'll be lots of short acts from creative folks around town geared for adults! I'm going to try my hand with a show I've been dreaming about for years - "The Story of Sweet Potato from Farm to Fame!" Can only do Act One, with some neat props, many of them made by Sean Hall, an amazing prop maker, and a few collaborators. Check out the poster here!

10/29/2025

Important info for nutritionists everywhere - this is from the NM - Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics Executive Committee - In the event of a federal budget impasse or delay, we are facing a real risk of disruptions to SNAP benefits — which in turn could harm the health and nutritional security of vulnerable individuals and populations we serve.
Our ask to you:
We encourage each member of our organization to take these steps today or tomorrow:
Contact the offices of our U.S. Senators and express the following (or similar) message:

“As a [Registered Dietitian Nutritionist] in New Mexico, I strongly urge you to support full and timely funding of the SNAP program so that benefits can be issued on schedule. Food and nutrition security are foundational for public health, chronic disease prevention and management, and health equity.

Thank you for your leadership on ensuring access to essential nutrition supports for our communities.” Briefly mention your professional role and the populations you serve (e.g., older adults, people with diabetes, rural communities) to personalize the message."

Encourage your colleagues, networks, and clients who will be affected by the loss of SNAP benefits to send a similar note, emphasizing that predictable nutrition assistance benefits all communities, regardless of politics.

Contact Info for NM Senators:
If you click on the hyperlinked names of our Senators below, it will open their website and display an option to “Write” to them. Scroll to the bottom of the webpage to see the phone numbers for each of their offices:

Martin Heinrich (U.S. Senate): https://www.heinrich.senate.gov/contact
Ben Ray Luján (U.S. Senate): https://www.lujan.senate.gov/

Thank you for advocating for nutrition!
The NMAND Executive Committee

10/22/2025

Halloween ideas minus the candy!

If you hate giving more candy to kids for Halloween - here are some fun ideas! Pumpkintines - Draw cute pumpkin faces with markers on the outside of clementines or oranges. And
Boo-Nanas - Turn bananas into ghosts by drawing eyes and mouths with markers banana skins. You can keep the bananas whole or cut them in half and, when serving, line them up with the cut side down so the "ghosts" are standing up.