x

75% of people globally want unbiased news (Pew Research) but are concerned they're not getting that.

Get balanced coverage with Symby. See how stories are covered across diverse outlets and spot when one side covers a story the other skips.

PODCAST

The Food Chain

BBC World Service

The Food Chain examines the business, science and cultural significance of food, and what it takes to put food on your plate.

arts food

All Episodes

26:29

Hungry at sea

The Food Chain ·

2024/04/17

Over two million people work in the international shipping trade, and they are often at sea for months at a time. That’s a lot of meals being made by the cook on board, and their work is crucial for keeping the crew happy. Ruth Alexander hears from seafarers about why that makes “cookie” the most important person on board a ship and why, in some cases, crew members are going hungry. A former captain of merchant vessels tells us how food is used for so-called “facilitation payments” to corrupt

en

29:23

Food double-acts: TV chefs

The Food Chain ·

2024/04/10

What’s the secret behind the on-screen chemistry shared by some TV chef duos? The recent death of Dave Myers, one half of ‘The Hairy Bikers’ with Si King, has prompted this programme celebrating successful food friendships. Dave and Si made food shows and cookbooks that took their fans all over the world, and off-screen they were close friends. In this programme Ruth Alexander speaks to two chefs who have found success in food with a good friend. Ruth Rogers, co-founder of The River Cafe restaurant

en

26:18

How to run a restaurant

The Food Chain ·

2024/04/03

These are tough times for restaurants. If the pandemic's rolling lockdowns were not bad enough, independent eateries now find themselves caught on a conveyor belt of crises: inflation, labour shortages and high rents. That is without mentioning the post-Covid agoraphobic “hermit consumer", who prefers to hunker down indoors than splash the cash on going out. If the stats are to be believed 60% of restaurants fail in the first year, 80% after five. And yet despite the long odds many are still

en

27:13

The real Willy Wonkas

The Food Chain ·

2024/03/28

Step inside the chocolate factory to hear the secrets of what it’s like to invent sweet treats for a living. Find out why chocolatiers think the raw material is like a “needy child”, but can also bring great joy to people’s lives. And hear the family story of the invention of one of the best-known British chocolate bars, with a trip to an archive of hidden stories from the confectionary industry – and some well-preserved sweets. If you would like to get in touch with the show, please email:

en

32:39

Fasting and feasting

The Food Chain ·

2024/03/21

Fasting has been a religious and cultural practice for thousands of years, why do people do it? What happens to your body when you fast? The Food Chain speaks to a British family breaking their fast during Ramadan, a woman in India completing a day long fast for Mahashivratri and explores why the practices around Lent have changed over the years. An expert on intermittent fasting talks us through what is happening to our bodies, and why it might have hidden benefits. In this programme, Rumella

en

27:28

Why we love dumplings

The Food Chain ·

2024/03/14

Dumplings feature prominently in cuisines around the world. Some, like the Ghanaian kenkey, or the Irish dumpling, are balls of dough. But in many countries they’re filled with other ingredients. From the Russian pelmeni, to the Japanese gyoza, for centuries we’ve been putting meat, vegetables or cheese in small pouches of pastry, and making delicious snacks. So where did this idea originate? And are all these differently named dumplings connected?Ruth Alexander explores the history of this humble

en

30:03

The fifth taste

The Food Chain ·

2024/03/07

Sweet, sour, salty, bitter and... umami. Have you heard of the fifth taste? Umami, meaning ‘delicious flavour’ in Japanese, was discovered by a chemist in Japan in 1908 but it took nearly 100 years for it to be recognised as a fifth distinct taste. It is described by many as a savoury or meaty taste. In this programme Ruth Alexander learns about the chemist who first discovered umami, and the industrially produced version he created – monosodium glutamate, or MSG. It’s a food additive that’s been

en

27:12

The school cooks

The Food Chain ·

2024/02/29

Three school chefs tell Ruth Alexander what it’s like serving up canteen food every day. Find out how they manage hundreds of hungry child customers, what pro tips they have for making vegetables seem delicious, and why they all find the job so satisfying. We hear from the USA, Liverpool in the UK and a school chef in the far north of Finland about the challenges of cooking mountains of meatballs, how to cope when the vegetable biriyani goes all over the ceiling, and why it’s one of the most

en

33:16

Is this ultra processed?

The Food Chain ·

2024/02/22

Have you heard of ultra processed food? In 2010 a group of Brazilian scientists said we should be focusing less on the nutritional content of food, and more on the form of processing it undergoes. They created the Nova system, a way of categorising foods based on how processed they are. It identifies ultra processed foods as generally industrially manufactured, containing ingredients such as emulsifiers, stabilisers and other additives that would not be found in an average home kitchen. A growing

en

27:18

Table talk

The Food Chain ·

2024/02/15

What do you and your family chat about at dinner? We eavesdrop on conversations over food all over the world, hearing about poetry, politics, what is on TV and how Morag’s leg is recovering. Whether you gossip or have more philosophical debates find out how integral good communication is while we are eating, often marking the only point in the day or week when a family gathers together. We learn why a matchmaker thinks a dinner date might not be such a good idea after all if you want the

en

31:44

Detroit's urban farmers

The Food Chain ·

2024/02/08

The city of Detroit in the United States has a lot of vacant space – as much as a quarter of residential, commercial and industrial sites lie unused today. In this programme Ruth Alexander meets the people who are growing food in their neighbourhoods, creating urban farms and community gardens where houses once stood. Mark Covington is the founder of Georgia Street Community Collective, and Tyson Gersh is the co-founder of the Michigan Urban Farming Initiative. Ruth learns why so much land stands

en

27:07

Rebuilding Turkey’s food culture

The Food Chain ·

2024/02/01

In February 2023, two earthquakes devastated parts of Turkey. The disaster claimed the lives of nearly 60,000 people in southern Turkey and northern Syria. In this programme Victoria Craig travels to the city of Antakya, part of Hatay Province, close to the border with Syria. It’s a region long famed for its cuisine, and even has special UNESCO recognition for its gastronomy. Since the earthquake a year ago much of the local population has left the badly damaged area, and food businesses in the

en

30:47

Is Chinese food the best in the world?

The Food Chain ·

2024/01/25

Chinese food is popular and successful around the world. But is it afforded the respect it deserves? In some countries Chinese food has been seen as something tasty, but ultimately cheap and not very healthy, despite it being a cuisine with a focus on health, seasonality and gastronomic skill for centuries. In this programme Ruth Alexander meets Fuchsia Dunlop, a British food writer who has spent a career studying Chinese cuisine. She argues that the food has long been undervalued in the West, and

en

27:32

How to invent an apple

The Food Chain ·

2024/01/18

Have you ever wondered why the apple you bite in to is so crisp and juicy? And why it’s available all year round? Apples originated in the mountains of Central Asia, and made their way along trade routes to Europe and then on to the rest of the world. They are now one of the most widely consumed fruit worldwide. An apple seed will produce a completely different fruit to the tree it came from – so new varieties have to be bred and cultivated. In this week’s episode Ruth Alexander finds out about

en

32:23

The preservers

The Food Chain ·

2024/01/11

Humans have preserved food to make it last longer for thousands of years. In this programme Ruth Alexander learns about different methods of food preservation used around the world, including pickling, dehydrating and canning. Food historian and writer Darra Goldstein in the US explains the history of this art. Yukari Sakamoto is a trained chef and sommelier who leads food tours in Tokyo, she explains why people in Japan take the idea of a well stocked pantry seriously. And Usha Prabakaran in

en

27:02

Another year away from home

The Food Chain ·

2023/12/28

Ruth Alexander talks to two families displaced by the war in Ukraine, as they reflect on their second year away from home. They discuss the difficulties of being away from loved ones and the solace home cooking can provide. Ruth speaks to Natalia Lomonosova, who’d had to flee her home in Kyiv with her teenage daughter and has set up a new life in Berlin, Germany; and she visits Mariya Dmytrenko and her family, who are living with their hosts Brian and Julie Lamb, in Blackburn, England. If you’d

en

29:51

Festive food stories

The Food Chain ·

2023/12/21

We take a trip around the world with BBC World Service presenters and listeners, finding out which are their favourite foods when a celebration is in order. A porridge which is hidden around the house to ward off spirits, sweet and delicious pilau shared with neighbours and an ornate box filled with as many as 50 types of food in Japan – we hear about what’s on the menu at this time of year. Ruth Alexander has help from her enthusiastic three-year-old son to make a traditional Christmas cake for

en

27:08

Feed your brain

The Food Chain ·

2023/12/14

Our brains require 20% of our body’s energy intake, despite making up, on average, only 2% of our body weight. There are nutrients that are needed for brain health and development, yet many of us don’t think about specifically eating for our brains. In this programme Ruth Alexander learns about the relationship between our gut and our brain, and the impact food can have on your alertness, mood and memory. And just why oily fish, and other foods containing omega 3 fatty acids are so good for your

en

27:10

How to stop cooking killing

The Food Chain ·

2023/12/07

It’s estimated that more than 2 billion people use polluting stoves - with severe consequences for their health. The World Health Organisation says 3.2 million people die each year as a result of the household air pollution they cause. Ruth Alexander finds out why this problem – which also harms the environment – is so difficult to solve. She speaks to Dr Fatih Birol of the International Energy Agency in Paris; Sophie Odupoy from Koko Networks in Kenya; Naramath Lucas Kariongi from the Rural

en

27:15

Pesticide exports

The Food Chain ·

2023/11/30

Many countries allow the manufacture and export of pesticides that are banned for use in their own countries. Recently France and Belgium have introduced laws preventing the export of such agrochemicals if their use is banned in the European Union. The European Commission is currently considering whether to introduce similar laws. Grace Livingstone reports from Paraguay where some small farmers living near soya plantations say heavy pesticide spraying is affecting their health and livelihoods. We

en

517 results

Similar Podcasts

Start The Breakthrough Full Audiobook Now, Thriller Fans!

thebookvoice.com

Get Hooked On The Life-Enhancing Full Audiobook Experience!

thebookvoice.com

西四五条

主播郑捕头

Podcast Patapoe

0d0a

On Mic Podcast

Jordan Rich