This project was developed as the second part of our successful Erasmus+ Youth Exchange “Simple Healthy Meals” (2022-3-IE01-KA152-YOU-000092660), which scored 78% in its final Léargas report. After that exchange, Irish participants used the Simple Healthy Meals booklet to lead workshops with 36 younger youths, many of whom were newcomers or migrants. Their enthusiasm inspired them to reconnect with Spanish and Turkish peers from previous Erasmus+ collaborations, and together they co-designed this follow-up project. Young people wanted to deepen their skills in healthy cooking, learn about cultural food traditions, reduce food waste and create youth-led digital content that could inspire their peers across Europe. During planning, participants explored EU evidence showing that approximately 88 million tonnes of food are wasted annually in the EU at a cost of €143 billion. They identified similar challenges in their own communities, including low food literacy among young people, high reliance on processed or fast food, and limited awareness of sustainable food behaviours. These concerns mirrored Safefood Ireland’s 2021 study and observations shared by Spanish and Turkish partners. Young people highlighted that food is a universal theme that connects cultures, supports well-being, and offers an accessible entry point for promoting inclusion, sustainability and intercultural understanding. The project was therefore designed to use cooking, food traditions and digital storytelling as practical tools to promote healthier lifestyles, intercultural dialogue and environmental responsibility. The exchange aimed to enhance food literacy, strengthen practical life skills, build cross-cultural friendships and empower young people to influence wider audiences through creative media. A WhatsApp poll showed that 83% of the group wanted to co-manage TikTok and Instagram accounts, produce video diaries and create fun educational content. The project also sought to ensure meaningful participation for young people with fewer opportunities—including asylum seekers, refugees, newcomers, undocumented youth and those facing travel barriers—through a combination of in-person and online activities. The project is strongly aligned with key European and global frameworks: the EU Green Deal 2050, Erasmus+ 2021–2027 priorities, the EU Youth Strategy 2019–2027, the EU Youth Goals (especially “Connecting the EU with Youth”), and the United Nations SDGs 3 (Good Health and Well-being), 12 (Responsible Consumption and Production) and 13 (Climate Action). The cross-border nature of the exchange provided clear European added value, enabling young people to compare food-waste habits, co-create intercultural recipes and collaboratively produce a multilingual digital campaign with real EU reach. The project’s objectives (from the approved application) were: 1. Cross-cultural cuisine learning and dialogue between the participants from different countries, with a view to promoting valuable nutritious diet information. 2. Ensure participants can prepare simple, healthy meals independently by the end of the exchange. 3. To unite young people from different backgrounds, nations, cuisines, and cultures to exhibit their food at local Farmers’ Markets. 4. To learn how to prevent food waste, respect other national cuisines, and break stereotypes through evaluation and discussion with young people from other countries. 5. To encourage young people to create Instagram reels and fun short videos for TikTok to inspire an online audience. 6. To give young people who cannot travel and the undocumented the chance to participate in Erasmus+ Youth Exchange and to learn about Erasmus+ opportunities. 7. To promote creative youth-led online awareness campaigns on TikTok, Instagram, social media, blogs and other platforms to inspire EU youth to minimise food waste and cook simple, healthy meals.