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Objective: To describe the food consumption, nutrition knowledge and nutritional assessment of childbearing age women and their children, living in rural villages in Madagascar. The results presented are related to the Tany Vao research study. Design: A cross-sectional pilot study. Setting: The study was carried out in Ampanitosoha village on Nosy Mitsio island in Madagascar. Participants: 32 women (14–49 years) and 36 children and adolescents (2–17 years). Results: 70 % of the women lacked nutrition knowledge and did not reach the Minimum Dietary Diversity Index for Women cut-off. The median BMI was 21·1 kg/m2 but 55·2 % of the women exceeded the cut-off for waist-to-hip ratio, 51·7 % for waist-to-height ratio and 81·2 % for mid-upper arm circumference (MUAC). Almost all had adequate intake of energy, protein and carbohydrates, while 27·6 % had excessive fat intake and 75·9 % of added sugars. Over half of the women did not meet the micronutrients Reference Daily Intake (RDI). For children, the MUAC z-score was lower for boys than for girls (P -value = 0·041). Conclusions: These results underline the importance of increasing women's nutritional knowledge to promote healthy pregnancy and lactation. Moreover, it is fundamental to provide people living in rural areas with sustainable tools to improve dietary diversity and support long-term health. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]