I’m Karen Le Billon, and this blog is where I write about France, food, and parenting. My latest book is French Kids Eat Everything: How our family moved to France, cured picky eating, banned snacking, and discovered 10 simple rules for raising happy, healthy eaters.

Here’s a sneak peek at the French Food Rules.

A bit of explanation about my blog posts: I’m not an advocate of ‘French parenting’, and I try to avoid generalizations about the way the French or Americans or Canadians (or anyone else, for that matter) eat–we’re just too diverse. Rather, the blog shares ideas, tips, and recipes (just as I do in the book), with the goal of sparking debate about key issues–like school lunches, snacking, and the food system.

There is no kids’ food in French school lunches. Don’t believe me? Check out the tasty, healthy, and decidedly grown-up sounding school lunch menus at my French Kids School Lunch Project. Cabbage salad and roast guinea fowl, or lentils and lettuce for preschoolers? And they do this for an average of $3 per meal (not much more than the average price of meals in the US National School Lunch Program).

This is intended to be food for thought. I’m not saying we should eat exactly like the French. But we could reflect on if any aspects of their approach to kids’ food might be useful in our communities. My opinion is that the French have a great approach to both what and how kids eat–one we could learn a lot from.

Underlying this blog is my belief that healthy food is a right, and that eating well is for everyone–not just for elites or foodies. I also believe that food insecurity and unhealthy eating habits are two expressions of food and education systems that need fixing, so I blog about food politics, and about the amazing people and organizations working for better food in North America. These continue to inspire me…and hopefully you too!

Welcome!

ps: Exciting news: French Kids Eat Everything is now on sale!