Real Food During Production
Staff used real food during Great Hall feasts in the first movie. When it came to realistically depicting the books, the development team spared no expense, and actual food was used during the Great Hall feast sequences, despite the high cost.
Food Smelled Bad
Under the hot production lights, the food quickly spoiled and emitted foul odors. Since the food was real, it easily spoiled and emitted foul odors under the bright lights. To stop the bad odor issue in the following films, they used artificially frozen food molds.