The Food Chain

BBC World Service
  • 5.0 (1)
  • FOOD
  • EVERY TWO WEEKS
The Food Chain

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

  1. We are 10!

    6 DAYS AGO

    We are 10!

    We are celebrating 10 years of The Food Chain with some of our favourite programme moments from the past decade. Fishing to stay alive, chopping onions in remembrance, and tasting people’s names – these stories and more tell us something about our relationship with food and how it helps us connect with one another. If you would like to get in touch with the show, please email: thefoodchain@bbc.co.uk Presenter: Ruth Alexander (Image: A chocolate birthday cake with number 10 candles on top. Credit: Getty Images)

    29 min
  2. Just vanilla

    14 NOV

    Just vanilla

    Dull? Boring? Plain? Vanilla is a byword for something which is ordinary or standard. In this programme Ruth Alexander finds the story of the popular spice is anything but normal. Originating in Mexico it’s travelled the globe and taken over, and is now one of the most valuable commodities available. It’s gone from being highly sought after and the height of luxury – even serving as an aphrodisiac for Mesoamericans and a European monarch - to ubiquitous and considered “regular”. Despite its reputation there is still a lot to appreciate about this complex flavour, and fans in one ice cream parlour are keen to make sure it isn’t overlooked. Presenter: Ruth Alexander Producers: Nina Pullman and Hannah Bewley (Image: A vanilla bean and flower. Credit: Getty Images)

    26 min
  3. How work changed lunch

    7 NOV

    How work changed lunch

    How do our work habits shape what we eat? In this programme Izzy Greenfield discovers the history of the workplace lunch and the ways in which society has reshaped it. Historian Megan Elias of Boston University in the US explains how lunches have evolved from the factories of the 19th century Industrial Revolution to sandwiches eaten at the desk in 20th century offices. Izzy visits an office and co-working space in Manchester, run by Department, a company that operates office spaces in the North of England. Abigail Gunning, Operations Director, explains why it makes sense for the company to open the building’s cafe and restaurant to the public as well as staff. And how does workplace food impact our health? Olivia Beck, registered nutritionist at Food Choices at Work in Cork, Ireland, explains why it’s in employers’ interests to create a healthy food environment for all staff, whether in the office or at home. If you’d like to contact the programme you can email thefoodchain@bbc.co.uk Presented by Izzy Greenfield. Produced by Beatrice Pickup. Additional reporting by James Jackson. (Image: a man eating a burger with a glass of juice at his desk in front of a computer screen. Credit: Getty Images/BBC)

    29 min
  4. Living with water shortages

    23 OCT

    Living with water shortages

    Water scarcity is an increasing problem on every continent, according to the United Nations. Around half the world’s population experiences severe water scarcity for at least part of the year, according to a report by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change. Global warming and population growth is expected to make the situation worse, so what is it like to run a home or a business amid water shortages? Ruth Alexander hears from households and businesses in Karachi, Pakistan and Bogata, Colombia, and finds out lessons from Cape Town, South Africa which was said to be approaching ‘Day Zero’ when the taps would run dry in 2018. Ruth explores whether desalination – harvesting drinking water from the sea - could ever offer a sustainable solution. If you would like to get in touch with the show, please email: thefoodchain@bbc.co.uk Produced by Rumella Dasgupta and Beatrice Pickup. (Image: people queuing for water in Cape Town, South Africa in 2018. Credit: Bloomberg/Getty Images/BBC)

    27 min
  5. Housemates

    16 OCT

    Housemates

    Did you share a flat, house or kitchen as a student or professional? Is it the shared meals and conversation that stay with you, or the piles of dirty dishes and missing food? This week Ruth Alexander has a look around shared kitchens all over the world. We hear the good, bad and dirty – and give advice on how to build cooperation in your shared kitchen. Ruth hears from a former housemate what she was really like to share with, as well as a surprise revelation about her unappetising meal of choice. If you would like to get in touch with the show, please email: thefoodchain@bbc.co.uk Presented by Ruth Alexander. Produced by Hannah Bewley. (Image: five students sat on sofas in their shared living space eating a meal they have cooked together. Credit: BBC)

    28 min
  6. How much water should I drink?

    9 OCT

    How much water should I drink?

    Do you know how much you should drink? Many global guidelines recommend approximately 2 litres a day for women and 2.5 litres a day for men, including food. But scientists say there is actually huge variation in how much each of us need as individuals. Ruth Alexander speaks to Professor John Speakman at the University of Aberdeen in Scotland, who explains why your age, sex, weight, and other environmental factors such as air temperature, humidity and altitude all make a difference. Dr Nidia Rodriguez-Sanchez, senior lecturer at the University of Stirling in Scotland, explains why our bodies need water and what happens if we drink too little, or too much. That happened to Johanna Perry in the UK, she tells Ruth what happened when she drank too much water whilst running the London Marathon in 2018. Presented by Ruth Alexander. Produced by Beatrice Pickup. (Image: a woman holding a plastic bottle of water. Credit: Getty Images/ BBC)

    26 min
  7. Can you taste a place?

    2 OCT

    Can you taste a place?

    Is it possible to taste a place? A listener wonders whether the French concept of ‘terroir’ can apply to food and, if so, what the science behind it is. Ruth Alexander goes in search of the answer, exploring how growing conditions and practices can develop flavours unique to a location. She also hears about why the value you give to certain flavours might also be cultural. Ruth speaks to a honey expert who is mapping the flavours of the sweet syrup across the world, a barley geneticist working with a high-end whisky brand and visits a vertical farm in Liverpool, UK, to see if foods grown in a closed environment still taste just as good. If you would like to get in touch with the show, please email: thefoodchain@bbc.co.uk Presenter: Ruth Alexander Producer: Hannah Bewley (Image: A barley field under a setting sun. Credit: Getty Images)

    29 min
  8. So you want to run a food truck?

    25 SEPT

    So you want to run a food truck?

    Fancy starting a food truck? It can be a way to trial new food concepts and see if your business has potential before committing to a restaurant premises. Ruth Alexander finds out what its really like running a food truck or van. She meets customers queuing for over an hour for the SpudBros van in Preston, north-west England, where brothers Harley and Jacob Nelson have drummed up business for their jacket potatoes on social media. Ruth speaks to Anna Brand who runs a vegan food van Vege Bang Bang in Auckland New Zealand, and sisters Natalie and Samantha Mwedekeli who started Mama Rocks, a food van selling gourmet burgers in Nairobi, Kenya in 2015. Today they have five premises and its time to sell the van that started it all. And Karan Malik talks about his food van SuperSuckers in Delhi, India. He saw the trend take off, but tells Ruth why he decided to get out of the business. If you would like to contact the programme email thefoodchain@bbc.co.uk. Presenter: Ruth Alexander Producer: Beatrice Pickup Researcher: Henry Liston (Image: Brothers Jacob and Harley Nelson in their food van selling jacket potatoes in Preston north-west England. Credit: BBC)

    26 min
See All (468)

Hosts & Guests

About

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

Information

  • Creator
    BBC World Service
  • Years Active
    2014 - 2024
  • Episodes
    468
  • Rating
    Clean
  • Copyright
    © (C) BBC 2024
  • Show Website
    The Food Chain

More From BBC

You Might Also Like

To listen to explicit episodes, sign in.

Stay up to date with this show

Sign in or sign up to follow shows, save episodes and get the latest updates.
Select a country or region

Africa, Middle East, and India

Asia Pacific

Europe

Latin America and the Caribbean

The United States and Canada