So, do the villagers eat on their own, do you have to tell them to eat, or both?

Also, for those who have been playing a long time and are really good at this game is it best to pause when you leave the game for a long period of time?

I also seem to run out of food before I can do anything else and it take FOREVER to get tech points. I keep starting over because all of my people are dying of starvation before anything else and no one want to "procreate" because everyone is hungry. What is the best way to insure plenty of food?

Thanks for the advice, just trying to learn how to play. Right now, for me, it's like watching a train wreck. I'm no good at it, but I can't help but go back and see the distruction.

Villagers will eat on their own if there is food to eat. Otherwise they will pace by the food bin and "worry" about the lack of food. You can also drag them to the bin and they will eat but that is not necessary.

Putting the game on pause is a good idea if your tribe is not well developed, meaning there is a lot of food. If there is enough food, you can let it run over night or when you are not around. Doing this will help you gain tech points that otherwise would not be gained if it was paused.

If you look in the guide area of the forum, you can find tons of stuff to help you. I suggest this guide to help you on your quest. Please beware that these give specific solutions and tips, so only look at it if you don't mind look at some "spoilers"

The villagers eat automatically without having to go to the food bin. You don't have to tell them to eat and if you see them eating at the food bin, you can pick them up and put them back on task.

It depends on the player for pausing. I like to pause.

You should focus on tech points by putting all available adults on Research so that you can get Level 2 Nature which helps you get an unlimited food supply. Hunting mushrooms constantly helps a lot to prevent starvation. You can pause, drop a kid on a mushroom, unpause, drop another kid, pause and repeat to get more mushrooms. Don't forget the Chief makes magic food once every 24 hours real time. Also, read LadyCFII's post:
http://www.ldwforums.com/ubbthreads/ubbthreads.php/ubb/showflat/Number/149712/page/1#Post149712

You don't need to feed the villagers they do that on their own, young and old alike.

Until your villagers are able to fish on their own, I'd for sure pause the game, even if you're gone for a short while.

LadyCFII's Sticky Note is a must read for anyone just starting out! Have fun and good luck playing VV3.

Villagers 'eat' every six minutes, automatically subtracting food from the total. They seem to eat 2-4 food per 'meal', for an average of 30 food per real-time hour, at normal speed. The trees regenerate 111 food every three hours, and the hive regenerates 2 food per hour.

One will occasionally walk over to the food bin and eat, too.

One way to ensure plenty of food is NOT TO PROCREATE! Why are you having more kids in that food situation? Ten is sustainable until you can get a grove going, but less is better, and I would aim for a sustained population of closer to seven or eight until I have more food.

"... for a long period of time" Yes, absolutely, it's recommended!!