Also, don't forget to have the children pick up mushrooms, especially the red ones. That should keep them going until more food comes.

If things get dire, you can pause the game while waiting for mushrooms, then unpause it just long enough for a kid to get it. I've also heard people say they've paused the game, and when a mushroom appears, they pile on a bunch of kids. When they unpause the game, several of the kids simultaneously pick up the mushroom, with each kid receiving food credit. So one mushroom picked up by 5 kids is equal to 5 mushrooms with just one kid. I haven't tried this myself.

I found that the villagers last a very long time — with continued good health — when I ran out of food in the beginning. So I didn't do any pausing or cheats and it worked out just fine.

You may want to pause the game when you're not actively playing it so you don't have villagers messing with the crops or running out of food with no kids picking up mushrooms. Once you get the algae out of the water, you'll be set for the rest of the game.