The Food Chain

26:29

How to eat for success on weight-loss drugs

The Food Chain ·

2026/09/30

Weight-loss medication, or GLP-1s as they are also known, are designed to suppress your appetite - so how do you make every mouthful count? Ruth Alexander looks into what happens to the body on these drugs and what it feels like to take them. She learns why it's vital to change your diet to minimise side effects like nausea and constipation and to avoid vitamin and mineral deficiencies. Plus why what you eat before you start taking the medicines also matters, and how to give yourself the best chance

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26:29

Culture shock

The Food Chain ·

2026/09/23

Imagine not recognising the food in the shops, markets and restaurants around you. Moving to a new country to live and work can come with some culture shocks and food can be a big part of that. Ruth Alexander speaks to people who have lived in different countries. Listener Jen Ballantyne in the UK has taught in Japan, Tanzania, Azerbaijan and Brunei. Chinese Canadian chef Kelvin Cheung has lived in Belgium and India and today has a restaurant called Jun's in Dubai. Miwa Kishi is a Japanese cookery

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26:29

Is a healthy diet more expensive?

The Food Chain ·

2026/09/16

Is it more expensive to eat healthily? You might think the answer is simple: Yes of course, if you buy fruits, vegetables, beans and pulses and cook from scratch. But is it that easy? With the help of the UN's Food and Agriculture Organization, Ruth Alexander finds out where in the world a healthy basket of food costs the most, and why globally, billions of people are priced out of a nutritious and varied diet. She hears from Frances in Nigeria, struggling to afford healthy basics for her family,

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26:29

What do chefs eat?

The Food Chain ·

2026/09/09

Ever wondered what the chef is eating? Snacking on the finest produce or surviving on thin air and caffeine? In this episode Ruth Alexander speaks to three chefs about how they get through the day, and the importance of the ‘family’ or staff meal. She’s joined by Juliette Feller, a Swiss chef working in London, Marisha Shukla a pastry chef in Bengaluru India, and Sam Grainger, an exec chef and restaurateur in Manchester in England. You can contact the programme by emailing thefoodchain@bbc.co.uk

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26:28

The regulars

The Food Chain ·

2026/08/19

Do you have a local cafe, restaurant or bar that you go to all the time? Maybe the staff recognise you or know you by name, perhaps you even get special treatment. In this programme Rumella Dasgupta finds out why people like to return to the same place, and the commercial value to a business of having regular customers. You can contact the programme by emailing thefoodchain@bbc.co.uk. Produced by Izzy Greenfield. (Image: a man sat at a bar chatting to a barman who is wearing an apron and cleaning

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26:28

Leaving home

The Food Chain ·

2026/08/12

Moving out of the family home can be a big first step at whatever age you do it. Paying bills, budgeting, shopping, and importantly cooking for yourself. In this programme Rumella Dasgupta asks what dishes you should be able to cook when you leave home for the first time. Rumella meets chef and food writer Claire Thomson and her daughter Grace Williamson in their kitchen in Bristol, England. Claire's latest cookbook, 'Dear Grace: Recipes from Your Mother for the Next Chapter in Life', was written

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26:29

What can food tell us about the past?

The Food Chain ·

2026/08/05

What can food reveal about the people who came before us? From ancient meals and family recipes to the chemical traces left behind in bones and teeth, food offers remarkable clues about how people lived, travelled and survived.In this episode, Ruth Alexander explores how historians, archaeologists and old cookbooks are helping us piece together the story of our past.Historian Professor Peter Scholliers explains how something as ordinary as the changing price of food can reveal shifts in society,

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26:29

Should I cut down on carbs?

The Food Chain ·

2026/07/29

Have you ever asked yourself: should I do Keto? Is white rice good for me? Am I eating too many carbohydrates? If so, then this episode of The Food Chain is for you. Carbohydrate-rich foods are everywhere and they’re delicious. But are they good for us? Carbs have a reputation for spiking our blood sugar and making us fat. But is that reputation deserved? Ruth Alexander talks to Javier Gonzalez, Professor of Nutrition and Metabolism at the University of Bath in England and US-based dietitian Julie

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26:29

When should I eat my evening meal?

The Food Chain ·

2026/07/22

When should you eat your evening meal? Is it really better to eat earlier, or does it depend on when you go to bed? And if you do have to eat late, is there anything you can do to reduce the impact on your health?In this episode of The Food Chain, Ruth Alexander explores what science says about the timing of dinner. From our internal body clocks to the food on our plates, we examine how the evening meal affects our metabolism, digestion and overall health, and separate the evidence from the

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26:27

The rise of eating alone

The Food Chain ·

2026/07/15

Listener Melanie wrote into The Food Chain to ask us to make a programme about the rising numbers of people who eat alone. She told us she often dines solo and sometimes finds the experience daunting. So today Ruth Alexander hears from Melanie and from other solo diners – some who find peace and joy in a table for one, and others who would much rather not be alone.With the help of Sociologist Professor Eric Klinenberg from New York University, Ruth looks at what’s behind the global rise in

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26:29

What do World Cup footballers eat?

The Food Chain ·

2026/07/08

Elite footballers are among the world's most finely tuned athletes. Every meal is carefully planned to fuel training, maximise recovery and prepare for the next match. But it wasn't always this way.In this episode of The Food Chain, Ruth Alexander explores how football's relationship with food has changed, from the days of steak and beef before a game to today's highly personalised nutrition plans.Sports historian Professor Matthew Taylor traces the evolution of football's food culture, explaining

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26:28

How to order a restaurant meal like a pro

The Food Chain ·

2026/07/01

With dining out becoming an increasingly expensive luxury, we find out how to order the perfect restaurant meal with top tips from a panel of seasoned pros. The Irish Times food critic, Corinna Hardgrave, veteran server and podcast host Brittany Felton and chef and hospitality advisor James Knight-Pacheco join Ruth Alexander to discuss how to make the most of a well-deserved meal from your hard-earned money. They cover everything from sharing dishes, whether to trust a waiter’s recommendations

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26:28

What to eat for a better night's sleep

The Food Chain ·

2026/06/24

Many of us have our own theories about sleep. Perhaps it's avoiding coffee after lunch, drinking chamomile tea before bed, or having a warm glass of milk. But what does the science actually say?In this episode of The Food Chain, Ruth Alexander explores the relationship between food and sleep, asking whether changing what we eat and drink can help us get a better night's rest.Professor Marie-Pierre St-Onge, Director of the Center of Excellence for Sleep & Circadian Research at Columbia

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26:29

Why do we love smoky flavours so much?

The Food Chain ·

2026/06/17

The history of smoking foods stretches back many years, but when did what began purely for preservation become a highly sought-after flavour? In this episode of The Food Chain, Ruth Alexander explores the origins of smoked foods and finds out why their flavours are so appealing to so many people around the world. She visits a smokehouse run by Michael Price in the port city of Lancaster in north-west England, where he explains the techniques used to flavour a variety of fish, as well as some of

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26:28

Can music change the way food tastes?

The Food Chain ·

2026/06/11

Music is part of the backdrop to millions of meals every day. But what if it is doing more than simply creating atmosphere?In this episode of The Food Chain, Rumella Dasgupta explores the growing evidence that sound can shape the way we experience food and drink. From scientists studying how the brain combines hearing and taste, to chefs designing dishes around playlists, we ask whether music has become an ingredient in its own right.Chef Gaggan Anand explains why music sits at the centre of his

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26:27

Can I save the family restaurant?

The Food Chain ·

2026/06/03

Running a restaurant is hard. Long hours, tight margins and constant stress. In this week's programme Rumella Dasgupta travels to Edinburgh, Scotland, to meet Lisa He and her mum Sophie. Lisa has just put her life and acting career on hold, to try and help her mum save the family's restaurant, the China Star. A video she made documenting her attempt has gone viral, with more than fifteen million views. But is a viral video going to be enough to turn a failing business into a success? Lisa's got to

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26:28

The business of food tours

The Food Chain ·

2026/05/27

Food tours are becoming one of the fastest-growing parts of the travel industry, with tourists increasingly choosing to explore cities and cultures through what they eat.In this episode, Ruth Alexander explores the global rise of guided food experiences and the people building businesses around them.In Manchester, food tour guide Julia Fairburn takes Ruth through some of the city’s best-known food spots, explaining how successful tours combine local history, storytelling and carefully paced eating

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26:29

The craft of the cocktail

The Food Chain ·

2026/05/20

Making cocktails isn't just about flair - bottles spinning through the air as the bartender puts on a show. It's about precision, perfectionism and people skills.Ruth Alexander meets three world-class bartenders to hear stories about their most glamorous customers, the dangerous ones, and what it takes to make the perfect drink. Hear about the highs and lows; from the glamour of working on a movie set to the what happens when customers turn nasty. What's it like to make this challenging job your

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26:28

How to meal prep like a pro

The Food Chain ·

2026/05/13

Meal prepping is supposed to save us time, money and stress. It's a huge trend on social media, but how can we make it work in our own real, messy lives? Ruth Alexander meets Hannah, a busy working mum who wants help to make meal times easier, quicker and more varied. Could batch cooking be the answer? On hand to offer advice and inspiration are Jess Rice from the US website Budget Bytes and Kevin Curry, who has around two million followers across his Fit Men Cook social media accounts. And if

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26:29

Rethinking the potato

The Food Chain ·

2026/05/06

Potatoes are having a moment.Once dismissed as dull, stodgy or even unhealthy, they’re now back, appearing on restaurant menus, in food magazines and across social media feeds.But the story of the potato goes back much further.In this episode, Ruth Alexander traces the journey of one of the world’s most familiar foods. From its origins millions of years ago to its place in today’s global food system.At the Natural History Museum, botanist Sandy Knapp explains how the potato may have been born from a

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