The Food Chain

Latest Episodes:

Food Chain Late Night Apr 09, 2016

Show notes

As part of the BBC’s Identity season we meet the people who feed us after hours, following the characters and cuisines that only come out after dark. Starting with the heady rush of a London kebab shop, Mike Johnson explores late night food culture around the globe. In an increasingly 24-hour world, how and when we eat is changing. What do our late night food habits say about our identities? We meet the late-night taco eaters of Mexico City, and find out why Hong Kong street vendors are under threat. Plus we hear what happens to your body when your meal times are out of sync with your circadian rhythms, and tell you where in the world you can buy an edible Rolex for forty-five cents. Night-owls only, on this episode of The Food Chain. Presented by Mike Johnson, produced by Emily Thomas, and edited by Kent DePinto. (Photo: Taco vendor Alfredo works late into the night in Mexico City. Credit: James Fredrick)

Front of House Apr 02, 2016

Show notes

What’s life like for a career waiter at the top of their game? The Food Chain looks at the business of serving and pleasing the ever-fickle customer. The food service industry is facing a cycle of disruption, with business practices changing as rapidly as the customers at lunch hour. We'll look at the current topic du jour - the controversy of tipping and how a movement to democratize the service industry may leave some minimum wage earners struggling to keep up. Manuela Saragosa contemplates the financial realities of life as a waiter – and how tipping your server may actually make them poorer in the long run. Also, we talk to a chef who decided to eliminate tipping when she realised the people serving the food were making more than those cooking it. And would you pay for a reservation? This week, the tables are literally being turned.

Presented by Manuela Saragosa. Produced by Kent DePinto and Emily Thomas.

(Photo: A waitress in Nantes, France. Credit: Getty Images/ Frank Perry.)

Food and Nostalgia Mar 26, 2016

Show notes

Manuela Saragosa explores the power food has to evoke memory and how memory impacts the food we eat.

Jamie Oliver’s mentor – Italian chef Gennaro Contaldo – cooks up a batch of his most nostalgic dish, his mama’s pasta, and tell us why he prepares it when he is feeling down.

A neurologist explains why food and smells have such a powerful impact on our brains. And, find out why ‘brand nostalgia’ is a marketing dream when it comes to getting people to part with their cash.

From Tokyo to Moscow via Nairobi we hear stories about your favourite comfort foods and meet the company using nostalgia to help people with dementia regain their appetites. Finally, we travel down under to find out why a humble collection of children’s birthday cake recipes has been dubbed ‘the greatest Australian book ever published.’

(Photo: Children receiving free meals. Credit: Getty Images)

Is Convenience Killing Us? Mar 19, 2016

Show notes

Food that has been processed, packaged, flavoured and often pre-cooked for us has increasingly become a normal part of everyday life around the globe. But what is the rise and rise of convenience food really doing to us? Many argue it is the root cause of spiralling obesity and diabetes rates, but could we survive without it and feed the world in the process?

Manuela Saragosa chews over the issues with a global panel of experts: Award-winning investigative journalist Joanna Blythman, author of Swallow This: Serving Up the Food Industry's Darkest Secrets; Jean-Claude Moubarac, an anthropologist and researcher in nutrition specialising in the effect of processed foods; Food journalist Mark Schatzker, author of The Dorito Effect: The Surprising New Truth About Food and Flavor.

Plus, we travel to China to look at the cultural impact of ‘western’ food. And, historian Rachel Laudan tells us why processed food is at the very heart of what makes us human.

(Photo: Supermarket aisles. Credit: Thinkstock)

Food Waste: How Low Can it Go? Mar 12, 2016

Show notes

This week, the Food Chain delves deep into food waste: a global problem of epic proportions that is costing one in every three of the world's calories. In January 2016, France became the very first country to ban supermarkets from destroying or throwing away unsold food. It was all thanks to the vision of one man: Arash Derambarsh. He tells Manuela Saragosa how he did it and why the rest of the world should follow suit. But, when it comes to waste: who is the main culprit along the food chain? And what can be done to turn the tide? We speak to Kenyan vegetable producers on the challenge of coping with last minute order changes from Supermarkets and review a high-tech solution from South Korea that has seen food waste drop by up to 40%. We ask food giant Nestle what the role of big business should be and a start-up entrepreneur tells us why food waste is a “modern day gold rush”. And what about you and me? Is an attitude problem amongst consumers the biggest hurdle to overcome? We explore consumer psychology from ‘ugly vegetables'’ to convincing the French to use 'doggy bags'.

Image: Leftover food, Credit: Thinkstock

No Such Thing as a Free Lunch? Mar 05, 2016

Show notes

From power lunches to 'desktop dining', we unpick the relationship between food and the workplace. We trace how industrialisation played its part in forging the origins of the modern lunch break and how employers began using food as a way to control their workforce. We take a trip back to 19th Century New York where a swelling labour force gave rise to the 'Quick Lunch' - the precursor to the fast-food we know and love today.

Google's very first executive chef reveals the secrets of Silicon Valley’s canteen culture and how he fulfilled his brief to "keep people on campus all the time" with his food. Plus, we ask what the humble pre-packed sandwich can teach us about changing attitudes to women, work and convenience.

Manuela Saragosa tracks down the BBC's most loyal lunch lovers and spends an afternoon with fire fighters in London who are living proof of the theory that colleagues that eat together perform better as a team. Plus, we put together a handy guide of 'desktop dining' dos and don'ts to safely navigate you through your lunch hour.

(Photo: A man eating at his desk looking at his laptop scrren. Credit: Thinkstock)

Food, Power and Punishment Feb 27, 2016

Show notes

Nothing to eat but stale bread and water - an enduring image of incarceration, but what part should food play in punishment? In America, the 'Nutraloaf' - a compressed food-stuff with just enough calories to keep you alive - has been used for decades to punish prisoners in solitary confinement, but many say it contravenes even the most basic human rights. Manuela Saragosa speaks to the man who brought a class action against the state of New York to get it banned. Plus, a prison dietician tells us about the difficulty of planning a nutritious daily menu on a budget of just $2.30 per day.

Food can also play a vital role in rehabilitation and help recreate a sense of normality. We hear from the Dutch prison using nutrition to appease violent behaviour, and find out about The Clink Restaurant - a dining experience with a twist. We get a lesson from a former convict on the challenging art of prison cooking. Finally, when all freedom has been taken from you, how the refusal of food can become a powerful political weapon.

Featuring:

Daniel Genis: Journalist, writer, ex-convict Heather Ann Thompson: Mass incarceration historian, Michigan University Taylor Pendergrass: New York Civil Liberties Union Barbara Wakeen: Prison nutritionist Ap Zaalberg: Dutch Ministry of Justice Dr Sarah Campbell: Professor of Irish and British history, Newcastle University Al Crisci: Creator of the Clink Restaurant

(Photo: Hands behind bars. Credit: Thinkstock)

The Truth About Diabetes Feb 06, 2016

Show notes

Over 347 million people worldwide have diabetes, and that figure is set to rise to half a billion in the next 20 years. It is a disease that is spiralling out of control, but how did we get here and who is to blame? The BBC’s Anu Anand and a panel of experts unpick some of the major issues in the diabetes debate from ‘sin taxes’ for food companies to the role of culture and race. Plus they answers questions from listeners around the world about how to prevent and live with the illness.

Contributors: Hank Cardello - Director Obesity Solutions Initiative, The Hudson Institute Dr. Aseem Malhotra - Cardiologist and co-founder Action on Sugar Dr. Gojka Roglic - WHO Diabetes Programme

Down with 'Foodies'? Dec 12, 2015

Show notes

Is being cool a sign of culinary class? In the autumn of 2015 the Cereal Killer café in East London was attacked by protestors. They viewed it as a symbol of rapid gentrification - arguing that the cafe- which serves cereal from around the world- exemplified the rising inequality in the UK's capital. It led to some basic questions about running a food business. And the tensions between what’s trendy, what’s traditional and what’s affordable when it comes to eating out.

But a larger discussion, about conspicuous consumerism and the so- called ‘foodie movement’ looms. In this programme from London, Sarah Stolarz explores the intersections of city living, being upwardly mobile and the pursuit of the next best meal. We look at food trends and their irresistible appeal when it comes to social media- although it turns out, no one actually likes to be called a 'foodie'. Is access to new and varied food becoming more democratic, or are social media sites glossing over the surface of the culinary class wars? And what does that have to do with the price of pineapples?

Featuring:

Alan Keery: Co-Owner, Cereal Killer Café Josėe Johnston: Author, 'Food, Democracy and Distinction in the Gourmet Foodscape' Polly Russell: Curator at the British Library @ClerkenwellBoyEc1 David Sax: Author of 'The Tastemakers: Why we're crazy for cupcakes but Fed Up with Fondue'

Photo: multi-coloured macaroons, Credit: Thinkstock

Breast Practice Nov 28, 2015

Show notes

As part of the BBC's 100 Women season, The Food Chain dedicates an episode to working mothers and how they feed their babies. More women are entering the global workforce, and many of them become mothers at a crucial point in their careers. But with the availability of parental leave as variable as there are countries in the world, many women must return to work while their child is still nursing. Meanwhile, the WHO says that a woman should exclusively breastfeed her child up to six months of age. So, how do you juggle the demands of feeding a baby with a working life? We'll hear about a project in Bangladesh that helps garment factory workers continue to breastfeed their babies, and we visit Indonesia where a taxi service exists to ferry breast milk from working mothers to waiting infants at home. And from Hong Kong to Ivory Coast, Manuela Saragosa reunites our panel of BBC correspondents - who are also working mothers - to discuss the challenges of reporting on their patch and pumping milk.

Image: Baby breastfeeding, Credit: Thinkstock

Featuring:

Dr. Larry Grummer-Strawn, World Health Organization Phyllis Rippey, Professor of Sociology at the University of Ottawa Micaela Collins, University of Toronto Janet Golden, Professor of History at Rutgers University, New Jersey Karishma Vaswani, BBC Asia Business Correspondent Juliana Liu, BBC Hong Kong Correspondent Tamasin Ford, BBC Ivory Coast Correspondent

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