Heart UK

The Food Programme

<p>Investigating every aspect of the food we eat</p>

BBC Radio 4

On BBC Radio 4 we’re marking the arrival of the Bayeux Tapestry in London by exploring the impact of the Norman invasion.  In this programme, food historian Dr Annie Gray travels to Normandy to investigate how the Norman Conquest changed what we eat and drink.The Normans crossed the English Channel with new cheeses, different varieties of apple to make cider and introduced rabbits to our table.  Annie samples the “Fantastic Four” of Norman soft cheeses – Livarot, Camembert, Neufchâtel and Pont-l'Évêque – and learns about their history with cheese expert David Raguet.  She visits cider-makers Christian Drouin and Jean Olivier Petrich to understand why Normandy excels in the drink and finds out about the production of calvados and pommeau.  Back in England, Annie also goes on the hunt for rabbits in Thetford Forest where you can still see evidence of the extensive Norman warrens.  Dr Millie Horton-Insch from the British Museum explains how food is depicted in the Bayeux Tapestry and Professor Ben Jervis considers what archaeology can teach us about the way our diets changed after 1066.Produced by Robin Markwell for BBC Audio in Bristol.

What the Normans did for our diet

School food is back in the spotlight, and as governments across the UK look to improve what children eat, what does it actually take to change a school meals service?Jaega Wise spends a day with Andrew Cowan, Catering Manager at Bury Council, whose team serves around 10,000 meals a day across more than 50 schools. From Manchester's wholesale produce market to Elton High School, she follows the people working to put more freshly prepared, seasonal food on pupils' plates.Along the way, Jaega visits Organic North, which supplies organic fruit and vegetables to Bury's schools, and The Organic Pantry, a prospective supplier hoping to be part of the council's network of local food producers. Produced in Bristol for BBC Audio by Natalie Donovan

A Day in the Life of a School Catering Manager

"One day we will eat with a knife and fork."As they were growing up, it's a phrase Ify Adenuga repeated to her children, including the grime artists Skepta and JME. The saying would later inspire the title of Skepta's 2026 album Fork & Knife, which he has described as being rooted in the immigrant mindset, aspiration and the belief that hard work might one day deliver a better life.In this edition of The Food Programme, Jimi Famurewa takes that phrase as a starting point to explore how the way we eat shapes ideas of identity, belonging and culture. From the arrival of the fork in Europe to the Nigerian tradition of eating with your hands, and from Cantonese chopstick culture to the formal rituals of the British dinner table, he uncovers surprising stories about the many different ways in which we consume our food.Part social history, part personal journey, this is a story about the rules we inherit, the traditions we hold on to, and what something as simple as a knife, fork, pair of chopsticks or even our own hands can reveal about who we are.Produced by Ishmael Soriano for BBC Audio Bristol

Fork and Knife

Dan Saladino meets this year's collection of musicians from around the world who are cooking as they perform at the WOMAD festival. What do their dishes reveal about global food history?Produced and presented by Dan Saladino.

Taste the World: The Origins of Our Food

There are many ways to age a cheese so how best to refine its flavours over time? Welcome to the art of affinage - a French term that translates as "refining" a cheese - and a practice that is starting to take off in the UK.   Sheila Dillon attends a competition to find the Affineur of the Year and discovers that the way you age a cheese can dramatically change its taste and texture. A cheddar can become more like a comté by changing the temperature, humidity and length of the ripening process. She hears from practitioners who regularly wash and turn their cheeses. Some have buried cheeses in coal holes, encased them in clay pots or even played them music to find new ways of making traditional cheeses taste differently. Experimentation with these techniques has led to new cheeses entering the market. In this programme the dark arts of affinage will be revealed.Presented by Sheila Dillon and produced in Bristol for BBC Audio by Robin Markwell

The Dark Arts of Affinage

Since January 2025, thousands of tonnes of common octopus, usually found in the Mediterranean, have been landed by fisherman off the south coast of England. 
But it’s still not a regular feature on UK menus. In this episode of the Food Programme, Jaega Wise heads to Brixham fish market to find out more about what’s happening, and visits seafood restaurants taking alternative approaches to the challenge. Rockfish owner and chef Mitch Tonks talks her through the difficulties of cooking octopus, and marine ecologist Bryce Stewart at Plymouth University explains why the creature could be here to stay. Jaega also explores what puts people off eating octopus - from tentacles to extreme intelligence.  And we head to Guernsey to meet a fisherman whose business has been severely impacted, and try some “Octodog”.Produced by Tory Pope.

Eating Octopus

Leyla Kazim revisits some of The Food Programme's most memorable stories to ask: what happened next? From 500kg of eels stranded in a holding tank in Gloucestershire and English olive oil being pressed in Lincolnshire, to the future of halloumi in Cyprus following an outbreak of Foot and Mouth Disease, and the impact of global politics on vegetables grown in Africa for UK consumers. Leyla returns to the people behind these stories to hear what happened after the programmes were broadcast. Listen to the original programmes: English Olive Oil
https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/m002f00zWhy Is Africa Feeding Us?
https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/m002m1mzHalloumi and hellim: The story of an island and its cheese
https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/m001jsc7Eels and Elvers
https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/m002lfhdConsider the Eel: Part 2
https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/m002t2khProduced for BBC Audio in Bristol by Natalie Donovan

What Happened Next?

Cacao prices broke all records and then crashed, Dan Saladino explores the fallout for farmers and the chocolate industry with Jack Thompson reporting from the Ivory Coast.Produced and presented by Dan Saladino

Inside the Chocolate Crisis

They’re in your chocolate, your gelato, even your coffee - pistachios seem to be everywhere at the moment - bolstered by the craze for Dubai Chocolate. In this episode Leyla Kazim asks what happens when the world seems to fall in love with one ingredient. She explores how the United States came to overtake traditional producers in the Middle East to become the world's largest pistachio grower, and hears about the nut's long history in countries such as Iran from Iranian-American food writer Anna Ansari. Meanwhile, Honey & Co.'s Sarit Packer and Itamar Srulovich demonstrate how versatile pistachios can be, creating both sweet and savoury dishes.Nick Moss, nuts market reporter at Expana, explains what's happening to pistachio prices and why forecasts for this year's harvest are lower than usual.Leyla also visits Green Lanes in Haringey, home to many Turkish and Middle Eastern businesses, to discover how pistachios have long been central to traditional desserts - and hears how rising prices are changing that. Finally, she meets Charlie Tebbutt, whose south London company Food & Forest imports nuts, including pistachios, from farms that are either avoiding irrigation or using agroforestry methods, as an alternative to the vast monocrops that supply most of the world's pistachios. Produced by Natalie Donovan for BBC Audio in Bristol

How Pistachios Took Over

Chef and broadcaster Romy Gill heads to the pavilion to explore cricket's relationship with food.  She discovers that the supposedly British institution of the cricket tea was in fact a tradition imported from Australia in the 1880s.  She visits Lord's - the Home of Cricket - and is given access to the kitchens to watch tea being prepared as well as receiving a tour of the Lord's museum to look through their culinary archives.  She's made to feel welcome by the BBC Test Match Special team and reminisces over her own childhood cricket teas growing up in West Bengal in India.   Romy explores the health of the cricket tea at a club level and heads to Stainland Cricket Club near Halifax in West Yorkshire to meet the inspirational Trish Wood who has helped bring cricket teas back to her club and John Fuller of Cricket Yorkshire who devised a competition to find the best cricket tea in the county.Robin Markwell reports from Stoke Gifford in South Gloucestershire on a decision by cricket clubs around Bristol who voted to no longer make cricket teas compulsory in their league after the pandemic.Presented by Romy Gill and produced by Robin Markwell for BBC Audio in Bristol with thanks to the BBC Test Match Special team.

Howzat? The Story of the Cricket Tea

Why did obesity become a global problem? Professor of Diet and Population Health Susan Jebb explores a heavy history, our changing relationship with food and reasons for optimism. She believes we live in an 'ultra-processed food system' which drives more of the world's population towards health harming diets and a lifetime of being overweight or obese. But she also believes change is possible, and the conditions are  right for a food systems change.Also featuring Hannah Ritchie of Our World in Data, Henry Dimbleby, author of the 2020 National Food Strategy, and Alicia Weston of Bags of Taste, a programme of change for people with few cooking skills on low incomes. Produced and presented by Dan Saladino.

The Weight of the World

Fifteen years after her cancer diagnosis, Sheila Dillon asks what role food could play in cancer treatment, prevention and recovery - and why it is still so often overlooked.Earlier this year, the Government published a new 10-year National Cancer Plan for England, aiming to save 320,000 lives and ensure three in four people survive at least five years after diagnosis by 2035. It’s been welcomed as an ambitious strategy, yet some say it has little to say about diet. References to food focus largely on reducing obesity - by making supermarkets to monitor and report on sales of healthy and unhealthy foods, and expanding access to weight-loss drugs. It also includes commitments to improving hospital food for children with cancer, and introducing prehabilitation programmes via the NHS App by 2028. So where does that leave food itself - in treatment, in recovery, and in the risk of relapse?Featuring interviews with: Clare Doney, the clinical lead for personalised care for the Northern Cancer Alliance covering the North East and North Cumbria. 
Dr Giota Mitrou, Executive Director of Research and Policy at World Cancer Research Fund International
Prof. Robert Thomas, head of oncology at the Royal London Hospital for Integrated Medicine, part of University College Hospital and consultant oncologist at Addenbrooks hospital in Cambridge.Produced by Natalie Donovan for BBC Audio in BristolResources:https://mywellbeingspacenca.nhs.uk/https://www.wcrf.org/living-well/living-with-cancer/cancer-and-nutrition-helpline/These links will take you to an external website. The BBC is not responsible for the content of external sites.

Could Food Do More in Cancer Care and Prevention?

Sheila Dillon heads out on the highway to investigate the world of food at motorway service stations.  Historically they have been a place viewed as a functional stop-off for a "tea and a pee" and often maligned for the quality of their food.  Motorway services enthusiast Dr David Lawrence from Kingston University talks through a short history of the Great British service station from Watford Gap and Newport Pagnell in 1959 through to present day.AA President Edmund King briefs Sheila on how his membership views motorway service food and Robin Markwell reports on the opinions of lorry drivers from Chippenham Pit Stop on the M4 in Wiltshire where more healthy eating options are now appearing on the menu.  Dan Sutton from Roadchef - one of the largest motorway service operators - also gives his thoughts on what the British motorist is looking for when wanting to be fed on the motorway and argues that familiarity of brands is key.Sheila takes a trip to Tebay Services on the M6 in Cumbria to understand a different way of providing motorway service food.  She meets the Dunnings family who have since opened services at Gloucester, Cairns Lodge in Lanarkshire and will soon open another at Tatton in Cheshire.  Their ethos includes an emphasis on locally sourced, homecooked food.  Sheila meets with their coffee and bread suppliers as well as touring their farm to understand how service areas might also be an engine for the local economy.Produced by Robin Markwell in Bristol for BBC Audio.

Food on the Move

Sheila Dillon looks at the plans to overhaul England’s school food standards, from cutting back on fried food, puddings and processed meat to serving more fruit and veg. She hears from pupils, caterers and campaigners who all want better school meals, but don’t always agree on how to get there. With concerns about cost and practicality, she asks what these changes might really mean for schools trying to make them work, and what the School Food System in Japan might tell us about the nations health. Featuring interviews recorded at Penwortham Girls' High School in Preston; Anna Taylor from The Food Foundation; Writer Heather Parry; Luke Consiglio from caterers The Pantry; Belfast Paediatrican Dr Jonathan Henderson, chef and food writer Suzie Lee; Naomi Duncan from Chefs in Schools; and Colette Fox from ProVeg International. The consultation period for the new School Food Standards for England closes on June 12th 2026. Produced by Natalie Donovan for BBC Audio in Bristol

Inside England’s School Food Shake‑Up

The food industry is predicting double digit inflation and are calling on the Government to act. Dan Saladino asks what lies behind the gloomy forecast, who will be most affected by price increases and if anything can be done to avoid the worst case scenario?Produced and presented by Dan Saladino.

The Price of Food

The BBC Food & Farming Awards come from Belfast this year. Jaega Wise heads to the Balmoral Show, the largest agri-food show in Northern Ireland, to find out what makes this such an amazing place for food and farming. Jaega will be meeting head judge Paula McIntyre to talk about why Northern Ireland is home to some of the UK's most exciting food and drink businesses. She also meets Eve Blair, presenter of Your Place and Mine on BBC Radio Ulster and the judge of this year's Northern Ireland award, to talk about why the Balmoral Show is so important to her.To nominate for this year's awards go to bbc.co.uk/foodawards where you can find the terms and privacy notice. Nominations are open from 6am 22 May 2026 to 12pm 15 June 2026.Producer: Sam Grist

The BBC Food & Farming Awards 2026 Launch: Belfast here we come

Sheila Dillon visits fruit and veg growers across the country to ask what should the government put in its landmark plan to grow more in the UK. With war in the Middle East driving up fertiliser and energy prices and a growing health crisis at home, more homegrown fruit and veg could hold the answers to many of our problems. But those on the ground tell a different story, as businesses prepare to invest more in farms overseas, increase imports or face an ongoing struggle to cover rising costs and competition. Sheila meets a berry grower in Kent, and a tomato producer in Lancashire, who show her the realities of their farms today, and she hears from experts across the sector with their ideas for what could, and should, go into the government’s Horticulture Growth Plan. Produced by Nina Pullman for BBC Audio in Bristol.

The future of our fruit and veg

Hallyu - the Korean Wave - is taking over. With dramas and films like Squid Game and K-Pop Demon Hunters topping the Netflix charts, K-beauty products filling TikTok feeds and chemist shop shelves, and the global tour of the biggest K-Pop band in the world, BTS, about to begin, there’s no getting away from it’s impact. In this programme Jaega Wise explores how this fascination with Korean culture is driving the popularity of Korean food across the UK. She chats with celebrity chef and author, Judy Joo and meets the restaurant owner catering for some of the most well-known K-Pop bands in the world. Jaega also takes a look at the products hitting our supermarket shelves, and finds out why the sharing concept is central to the ethos of Korean food.Presented by Jaega Wise and produced by Tory Pope for BBC Audio in Bristol

K-Food

Dan Saladino reports from Parabere Forum, a gathering of food storytellers, featuring Olia Hercules on the Ukrainian cooks who inspired her, indigenous Australian chef Mindy Woods on saving First Nations' cuisine and Palestinian writer Fidaa Abuhamdiya with a powerful story of olive trees and oil from the West Bank. 
 
Produced and presented by Dan Saladino.

Food Stories of Roots and Roads

Jaega Wise meets chef and broadcaster Matt Tebbutt at home in South Wales, to discuss his "Life Through Food". Matt has been presenting Saturday Kitchen Life on BBC One for almost a decade, but before he was a TV Presenter he worked as a chef - first in professional kitchens in London (he was in fact sacked by Marco Pierre White) and later ran his own gastropub in south Wales.  It was his cooking there at The Foxhunter - which he ran with his wife Lisa - that first got him noticed by the media, and an appearance on the second ever series of the Great British Menu. To discover what life is like on set for Matt, Jaega also pays a visit to the studios of Saturday Kitchen Live as they are rehearsing, to see how the live cooking show is put together week after week. She meets the team in the backstage "engine room" - the test kitchen - and discovers what they mean when they talk about "heroes", and finds out what happens at 11.30am after the cameras get turned off. Plus she chats to wine expert Olly Smith about Matt's career and the friendship they've developed while working in food tv. Produced for BBC Audio in Bristol by Natalie Donovan

A Life Through Food: Matt Tebbutt

Francesco Fiore is a chef and Catering Manager at Milton Keynes University Hospital, and over the last few years has made some remarkable changes to the food experience for patients and staff. Awarded the title of “Caterer of the Year” in 2025 by the Hospital Caterers Association, Frank as he's affectionately known by his team, has transformed the quality and variety of the food, reducing waste and inspired colleagues around the hospital to collaborate and come up with new ideas.Sheila Dillon follows Frank for a day as he goes about his job as catering manager to see the changes in action, and find out more about his passion for food.Produced by Sophie Anton for BBC Audio in Bristol.

A Day in the Life of a Hospital Chef

Sheila Dillon discusses the rise of eating disorders among young women as part of Radio 4’s “About the Girls” series, which is hearing from teens across the UK about life in 2026.As the number of young girls suffering from eating disorders increases in the UK, Sheila Dillon hosts a discussion about what's causing the rise, and what can be done to improve treatment outcomes.Details of help and support with eating disorders are available at BBC Action LineProduced by Natalie Donovan for BBC Audio in Bristol

About the Girls

Generation Z, young adults aged roughly 18 to 30, are coming of age in a world defined by uncertainty. With difficult job and housing markets many are experiencing prolonged adolescence, often living with parents far longer than previous generations. At the same time, they are the first true digital natives: a generation growing up with the internet as a central part of their lives.In this programme, Jaega Wise explores how these seismic social and economic shifts are reshaping the way young people eat and think about food. She speaks with author Chloe Combi about the cultural forces that are driving Gen Z’s evolving food identities. She also meets Sumayah Kazi, the youngest-ever Bake Off contestant, to talk about how social media is effecting how young people cook and eat. BBC reporter Emse Winterbotham lives at in her family home in London. She finds out more about the practicalities of living and eating with your mum and dad when you are an adult. Jaega also travels to Stourbridge to meet Will Griffin and his dad steve to talk more about how the generations are sharing the kitchen.Presenter: Jaega Wise
Producer: Sam Grist

Generation Z

Dan Saladino follows up the debate on if the eel should be off the menu.Produced and presented by Dan Saladino.

Consider the Eel: Part 2

Much focus goes on food growing and selling, but is the missing link in increasing the UK's food self sufficiency actually food processing? It might be all about Ultra Processed Foods in the news, but there is another, much older, side to food processing that plays an integral role in getting food from fields to our plates.Beans, peas, oats, veg and barley can all be produced in the UK in abundance, but producers often have to transport their crops for miles to reach basic processing facilities like cleaning, sorting, de-hulling or grading. The UK’s processing factories are part of a globalised food supply chain, importing vast volumes of grains and pulses from overseas as ingredients in our food. But it wasn’t always the case, as we hear from a Sheffield historian who has uncovered the city’s link with pea canning and the female pea pioneer who transformed the processing industry. From the farmer making oat milk in his own barn, to the UK’s last remaining processing facility for peas and beans, Sheila Dillon lifts the lid on this hidden part of the supply chain, and finds an industry at a crossroads.Produced by Nina Pullman.

Is Food Processing the ‘Missing Middle’?

Should we be taking water more seriously?  The emergence of the water sommelier would suggest so.  Jaega Wise visits a Cheshire restaurant that now offers its own water menu as well as a Peak District pub with a water bar and a borehole to draw its own spring water.  She talks to the co-founder of the Fine Waters Academy Michael Mascha who believes that water should be appreciated as a product with its own terroir and hears from Dr Natalie Lamb, a water industry expert who has been trained to appreciate the virtues of tap water.   Whether hard or soft, still or sparkling - the Food Programme takes a closer look at the liquid we all too often take for granted.Produced for BBC Audio in Bristol by Robin MarkwellProgramme contains a clip of the Only Fools And Horses Episode "Mother Nature's Son", written by John Sullivan, first broadcast on BBC TV on 25th December, 1992

Posh Water

Leyla Kazim reports from cork country in Portugal - where up to 10,000 of hectares of cork oak trees are being lost every year, despite laws protecting them from being cut down. Climate change is putting new stresses on the ancient forests, and as the cork industry worries that falling wine consumption could shrink global demand, Leyla asks why Portugal became the world’s biggest producer of cork in the first place, and what it will take to keep them thriving. She meets farmers using regenerative methods of working the land to protect the montado, and plantations where thousands of new trees are being planted.Presented by Leyla Kazim
Produced in Bristol for BBC Audio by Natalie Donovan

What’s Next for Portugal’s Ancient Export: Cork?

Shaped by centuries of colonialism and challenged by a changing climate, what is the future of food for the Philippines? Recent typhoons and floods were the worst seen in decades and there has been huge biodiversity loss. In the last century 93 per cent of forest cover has been lost.  
The archipelago's food system also carried the influence of Spanish and American control. However, a new generation is attempting to forge a Filipino food identity connected with a deeper history and farmers are looking to lost crops for climate adaptation.Dan Saladino and journalist Dany Mitzman report from Slow Food's Terra Madre Asia and Pacific held on Negros Island in centre of the Philippines, where they meet young farmers, producers, chefs and campaigners all attempting to create a sustainable, delicious and indigenous food future.Produced and presented by Dan Saladino.

Food Stories from the Philippines

In this edition Sheila Dillon explores the creativity of chefs, and asks how it’s being affected by the ongoing cost of living crisis. For Sheila, creativity in cooking is one of the pleasures we often take for granted when we go out to eat, and marvels at the alchemy chefs work with raw ingredients. But the hospitality industry is grappling with very difficult economic conditions - increased national insurance, business rates, energy bills, rent, cost of ingredients coupled with fewer customers with less money to spend, all mean that many restaurants are struggling to survive. According to the latest data from the Hospitality Market Monitor by NIQ, restaurant closures accelerated in the last three months of 2025 to nearly 19 businesses a week. What happens to that creativity when the industry is under so much pressure?In the programme chefs talk to Sheila about what creativity looks like in their kitchens at the moment, as the cost crisis leads to more restrictions on how and what they cook. We also hear how chefs of the future are being trained to work creatively in this tough environment. We hear from: Sam Lomas, Head Chef at Briar in Somerset; Owen Morgan, co-founder and owner of Forty-Four group; Charlie Buchanan-Smith, co-founder of The Free Company near Edinburgh; Niall McKenna, owner of James St and Waterman House in Belfast; Frank Fiore, Catering Manager at Milton Keynes University Hospital; Chantal Symons, Lead Development Chef at LEON Restaurants; and chef-lecturers Steve Oram and Ian Sutton and students at Capital City College at Westminster.Presented by Sheila Dillon and produced by Sophie Anton for BBC Audio in Bristol.

Chefs, Creativity and the Cost of Living Crisis

A year after sharing a £10 supper with 200 strangers in Copenhagen’s Absalon - an old church turned community hub - Sheila asks whether that experience could be recreated in the UK. After all, communal meals here are often one-offs, sometimes pricey, or feel like generous soup kitchens.  In this edition, Sheila meets people determined to change that; Ingrid Wakeling and Phil Holtam from Sussex Surplus are running trial communal dining events in Brighton, using surplus food to bring strangers together. Anna Chworow from Nourish Scotland is helping shape two pilot public diners - subsidised, everyday restaurants designed for everyone, while Jon Harper from Future Foundations explains how CanTeam is turning school canteens into community dining rooms. Sheila also visits The Long Table in Stroud - a pay-what-you-can community restaurant - to meet co-founder Tom Herbert, and is joined there by zero‑waste chef Max La Manna and Carly Trisk‑Grove from The Public Plate, who want every community to have their own low‑cost restaurant. Together, they discuss what it would take to make their dreams reality - and why they believe it matters.Presented by Sheila Dillon
Produced for BBC Audio in Bristol by Natalie Donovan.More info: Communal Dining -Part 1: https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/m0028l2c
The Long Table: https://thelongtableonline.com/
The Public Plate (Carly Trisk-Grove's project): https://www.thepublicplate.com/about
Nourish Scotland project: https://www.nourishscotland.org/projects/public-diners/ 
Right to Food Commission (Ian Byrne MP's project): https://www.ianbyrne.org/rtfcommission
Sussex Surplus (Brighton): https://www.sussexsurplus.org/
CanTeam: http://www.canteam.org/NB: Be aware these links take you to external non-BBC websites.

Eating Together

In a special edition Dan Saladino talks to the UK's biggest food producers and retailers to hear their visions for the future of food, health, sustainability and resilience.Along with the DEFRA minister Dame Angela Eagle, some of the most influential figures in food and farming are gathering at the annual Sustainable Foods event held in London. On the agenda will be health and nutrition, food security, net zero and regenerative agriculture. Will the ideas and strategies, outlined by the major supermarkets, food manufacturers and farming organisations result in significant changes to food in the UK?Produced and presented by Dan Saladino.

The Future of Our Food

After concerns that honey from overseas is being watered down with cheap rice and corn syrups, Sheila Dillon investigates the scale of global honey fraud. It's a story of complex international supply chains with the world's food security at its heart. In 2023, the European Commission found that 46 per cent of the honey it sampled was suspected to be fraudulent. Just last year at the World Beekeeping Awards the prize for Best Honey had to be cancelled after fears that adulterated honey might be entered.   The fake version can be very difficult to detect and beekeepers warn that it is forcing down the price of honey, potentially driving them out of business.So how serious an issue has international honey fraud become and how concerned should consumers in the UK be? Sheila visits Bermondsey Street bees in Essex in search of answers and speaks to the UK's two biggest honey producers - Rowse and Hilltop Honey. Food fraud expert Professor Chris Elliott from Queen's University Belfast analyses the situation and Robin Markwell reports from Copenhagen where the world's largest convention of beekeepers was recently held. Produced for BBC Audio in Bristol by Robin Markwell

The Honey Trap

One thing that could make us all healthier is drinking less alcohol – and there’s now a huge market for alcohol‑free drinks. But one category that has long struggled to deliver great taste is non‑alcoholic wine. In this episode Jaega Wise looks to find out why it’s so difficult to make a wine without alcohol that still tastes good, and asks what difference these drinks can make to people trying to cut back. Jaega begins the story of German producer Bernhard Jung, whose family pioneered vacuum distillation more than a century ago. She meets Fiona Graham and Alex Viol of Vino Zero along with wine expert Jane Rakison to taste some of today’s most promising alcohol‑free bottles, and speaks to David Hodgson of Zeno Wines about the challenges behind creating convincing 0% options. At Plumpton College, master’s student George Coles and programme manager James Clapham explain how future winemakers are experimenting with new approaches.During the programme, Jaega also brings together Professor John Holmes of the University of Sheffield and Richard Piper from Alcohol Change UK to explore how no‑ and low‑alcohol drinks might influence our drinking habits. And with Tom Ward of Wise Bartender, she looks at the growing world of mid‑strength wine - a category some believe could be the next step in helping people drink differently.Presented by Jaega Wise
Produced in Bristol for BBC Audio by Natalie Donovan

The Low-Alcohol Drinks Revolution: Can Wine Keep Up?

Fermented foods are more popular than ever, but what's the science? Dan Saladino explores the latest research into fermentation and the many health claims made for fermented food. Featuring the gut microbiome expert Tim Spector and fermentation expert Robin Sherriff.Produced and presented by Dan Saladino.

The Science of Fermentation

Desi pubs, boozers run by people of South Asian heritage, have been around since the 1960s. Originally a safe haven for immigrant drinkers during a time when they were often barred or excluded from pubs, they are now celebrated as successful businesses and diverse spaces. They are also food destinations serving some of the best grills and curries in the country. In this programme, Jaega Wise visits desi pubs in London and the Midlands to talk to landlords and drinkers about why these places are so special. She also interviews author David Jesudason on his books Desi Pubs: A guide to British-Indian Pints, Food and Culture.Pubs featured:
The Gladstone Arms, Borough in London
The Red Lion, West Bromwich
The Red Cow, Smethwick
The Regency Club, Queensbury in LondonShe also talks to journalist Nina Robinson and curator/historian Raj Pal. His podcast with Corinne Fowler is Only in BirminghamProduced for BBC Audio Bristol by Sam Grist

Desi Pubs

Sheila Dillon goes foraging for wild mushrooms in the Peak District in Derbyshire to find out what common fungi are easy to find - and delicious to eat. She hears from expert foragers, mushroom buyers and fungi fanatics about how the supply chain for this wild food works, from the forest floors of Eastern Europe to China's vast mushroom drying warehouses, as well as the lucrative, and sometimes dubious, trade of some of the most valuable mushrooms. 
Produced by Nina Pullman.

A Wild Mushroom Chase

Whisky writer Dave Broom has helped transform how the world tastes and talks about spirits, bringing flavour, culture, and meaning to a new generation. In this festive edition of the programme, Jaega Wise finds out how his ideas and passions came about, and what has made him one of the most influential voices in the drinks world.Born in Glasgow, Dave Broom began his career in the industry with a job at the wine merchants OddBins. He later ran a pub in Bristol before moving into writing about spirits for the trade media. Since then, he’s written 15 books on whisky and other spirits. His writing is known for drawing people into the world of flavour through music and food references, and through connections to place. As well as writing about Scotch, he has also long explored whiskies and spirits from around the world - and was an early advocate for Japanese whiskies. In June 2019 Dave Broom presented a crowd-funded documentary film called The Amber Light, which took him across Scotland, meeting distillers, musicians, and writers, and exploring the idea that whisky reflects the place it comes from. The film was directed and produced by Adam Parks.Presented by Jaega Wise
Produced for BBC Audio in Bristol by Natalie Donovan

A Life Through Drink: Dave Broom

Dan Saladino explores culinary cultures and world religions to find out how the date became one of the earliest, most revered, and diverse of all cultivated fruits, and also a feature of Christmas. Some of the world's historically important date palm oases have survived in the south of Tunisia. Dan travels to the ancient cities of Gafsa and Tozeur to visit two of them and watches the date harvest underway. There he tastes Tunisia's most prized date, the Deglet Nour, which translates as 'fingers of light' because of it's amber colour and almost translucent appearance.  In Tozeur he also explores Eden Palm, the site of of a museum dedicated to dates and date palm, where he hears how the date has been an important food and source of trade for thousands of years. Featuring food historian Ivan Day, food writers Yasmin Khan, Itamar Srulovich and Nawal Nasrallah, archeobotanist Professor Dorian Fuller, and scientist Shahina Ghazanfar. Produced and presented by Dan Saladino.

Dates: A User's Guide

Annie Gray always rejects turkey and the trimmings at Christmas. She believes they are a construct of a bygone era and will often eat pizza on the big day instead.
She explores alternative dinners from Christmases past, present and future. She visits Bath to discover what would have been eaten over Christmas in the Regency period and bakes traditional mince pies - made with minced meat.  She'll look at how Christmas is celebrated differently around the world and will discuss Christmas dinners to come with a food futurologist.Presented by Dr Annie Gray
Produced in Bristol by Robin Markwell for BBC Audio

Going Cold Turkey: Alternative Christmas Dinners

Leyla Kazim takes a look at the best food books and writing from 2025, and chats to food writer Ruby Tandoh about her new book looking at why we eat the way we eat now.  We hear picks from the rest of The Food Programme presenters - Sheila Dillon, Dan Saladino and Jaega Wise; books to get you cooking and books to get you thinking.Tom Tivnan from The Bookseller discusses the latest bestsellers, and Carla Lalli - cookbook author and former Bon Appétit food director - helps bust some common myths and even lies we see in about recipe books and in online recipes.Food Books for 2025:
* Serving the Public: The Good Food Revolution in Schools, Hospitals and Prisons by Professor Kevin Morgan 
* Give It a Grow: Simple Projects to Nurture Food, Flowers and Wildlife in Any Outdoor Space by Martha Swales
* Food Fight: From Plunder and Profit to People and Planet by Stuart Gillespie 
* Boustany: A Celebration of Vegetables from My Palestine by Sami Tamimi 
* Naturally Vegan: Delicious Recipes from Around the World That Just Happen to Be Plant-based by Julius Fiedler 
* WINE: Everything You Need to Know by Olly Smith 
* Winter Wellness: Nourishing Recipes to Keep You Healthy When It’s Cold by Rachel de Thample  
* Abundance: Eating and Living with the Seasons by Mark Diacono 
* Kapusta: Vegetable-Forward Recipes from Eastern Europe by Alissa Timoshkina 
* Indian Kitchens: Treasured Recipes from India’s Diverse Food Culture by Roopa Gulati
* All Consuming: Why We Eat the Way We Eat Now by Ruby Tandoh 
* Chop Chop: Cooking the Food of Nigeria by Ozoz Sokoh Presented by Leyla Kazim
Produced by Natalie Donovan for BBC Audio in Bristol.

The Food Books of 2025

When Tam o’ Braan began marketing Scottish Tea from his Wee Tea Plantation, the response was astonishing.  Upmarket retailers such as Fortnum and Mason and hotels from the Dorchester in London to the Balmoral in Edinburgh paid top prices for the supplies of this rare treat.  Scottish farmers caught the bug and bought tea bushes from Tam's plantation that he promised were bred especially for harsh Scottish conditions.  Magazines, national newspapers and even the BBC profiled the entrepreneur behind the innovations that were putting Scotland on the tea map of the world. The only problem was that Tam’s business was based on lies. His name wasn’t Tam o’ Braan, he wasn’t an award-winning tea grower and his tea certainly wasn’t Scottish.  Jaega Wise follows the story of Tam and his tea from the hills of Perthshire through the tea salons of London to Falkirk's Sheriff Court.    Producer: Nina Pullman

The Great Tartan Tea Swindle

The judges have reached their verdicts so who has won the coveted Food Programme chopping boards in 2025's BBC Food and Farming Awards?  Sheila Dillon and chair of the judges Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall meet some of the best food and drink producers in the country at this week's ceremony in Bristol.Produced by Robin Markwell of BBC Audio in Bristol.

And the Winner Is... The BBC Food And Farming Awards 2025

Dan Saladino and reporter Jack Thompson investigate the UK's growing dependence on two farms in northern Senegal based around a lake. In recent years they have become the source of most of the sweetcorn, radishes and beans sold by supermarkets. Is this a good arrangement for the UK and the Senegalese or a risk to food security in both countries? Produced and presented by Dan Saladino.
Reporting from Senegal, Jack Thompson.

Why Is Africa Feeding Us?

They say breakfast is the most important meal of the day - but what happens when thousands of children arrive at school too hungry to learn? In this programme, Jaega Wise looks into how the Government’s new free breakfast club scheme is being rolled out across England, seven months into a trial involving 750 primary schools. While the policy which aims to tackle hunger and improve attendance is welcomed by all, schools and campaigners raise questions about it's future funding and the exclusion of secondary schools and some special school pupils.At Holy Trinity Church of England School in Tottenham, Jaega visits a breakfast club being run in partnership with Chefs in Schools, where hot food is cooked fresh each morning in the same kitchen that serves lunch. In Weston-super-Mare, headteacher Marie Berry explains why her school’s breakfast club is a lifeline for families - and why she’s keen to be included in the new scheme. Campaigners at Sustain argue breakfast clubs could be a powerful tool to support local food producers and promote sustainable sourcing - and urge the Government to back that vision.We also hear from the charity Magic Breakfast, which provides food to 300,000 children at breakfast clubs every day, and from Olivia Bailey MP at the Department for Education. Food writer Michael Zee of @SymmetryBreakfast discusses Britain's breakfast culture, and why we so often eat the same thing every day.Presented by Jaega Wise
Produced by Natalie Donovan for BBC Audio in Bristol.

The Breakfast Club Challenge

Dan Saladino looks at why eels numbers are plummeting and asks if the species can be saved. On the River Severn he meets the last of the glass eel fishermen and conservationists.Produced and presented by Dan Saladino.

Eels and Elvers

It's twenty years since the Aldeburgh Food Festival began. Sheila Dillon examines its impact in this small Suffolk seaside town where food producers work together to forge strong local supply chains. She speaks to the festival's co-founder Lady Caroline Cranbrook who has been a passionate advocate of Suffolk's rich food ecosystem. She goes on a shopping trip with local restaurateur and hotelier George Pell, a self-styled "blow-in" from London. They visit a fishing family, a butcher and a farmer supporting a start-up serving crullers in a town where collaboration is king.Produced in Bristol for BBC Audio by Robin Markwell

Keeping It Local: A Suffolk Story

Sheila Dillon and this year’s head judge of the BBC Food and Farming Awards, Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall, hit the road to meet the finalists in the Best Food Producer category. From sourdough pioneers Aidan Monks and Catherine Connor at Lovingly Artisan in Kendal, and regenerative grower Calixta Killander at Flourish Produce in Cambridgeshire, to cheese champions Andy and Kathy Swinscoe at The Courtyard Dairy in North Yorkshire — they explore how these exceptional producers might hold clues to a more resilient food future. Inspired by Professor Tim Lang’s recent report, Just in Case: narrowing the UK civil food resilience gap, the episode asks: could these small but significant businesses be part of the solution to Britain’s food security crisis?Presented by Sheila Dillon
Produced for BBC Audio in Bristol by Natalie Donovan

Feeding Britain: Can Our Best Food Producers Deliver?

Dan Saladino meets people behind pioneering projects rethinking the future of chocolate, seafood and food forests. Which one will win this year's BBC Best Food Innovation Award?Produced and presented by Dan Saladino.

The Food Innovators: 2025

Five years ago, after 160 years in Norwich, the Colman's factory shut its doors for the last time. John Osborne is a writer, a poet and a performer - he's called Norwich home for 25 years. But last year, while writing a show about his city, he began to learn more about the depth of the history of Colman's, and he started to wonder why more people don't know about it.Between Jeremiah Colman, James Colman, Jeremiah James Colman and many many generations since, an entire empire was built on the back of these humble seeds. The company had a cradle-to-grave ethos, providing education, housing, healthcare and leisure for workers and their families. All of which means the factory, the school buildings, the churches, even the entire village of Trowse is still a part of the fabric of the city. Now, everywhere he looks in Norwich, from the double yellow lines, to the big yellow boxes on the pavement full of sand for de-icing the concrete in winter... John sees mustard. Hundreds of people worked at the factory, and as its doors shut in 2020, a crowdfunder was underway to launch a new Norwich mustard. Five years on, the mustard is nowhere to be found. Even the famous mustard shop, where everyone went for Christmas presents for their relatives, is gone. So John wants to rediscover this history, and along the way find out what's happened to Norwich's mustard. After all, the bright yellow labels on shelves all over the world still proudly read Colman's "of Norwich".  As it turns out, thanks to the determination of the local mustard farmers, mustard never really left Norwich at all...Presented by John Osborne
Produced in Bristol by Polly Weston

In Search of Mustard in Norwich

Sheila Dillon is joined by four guests who each have a deep connection with Welsh food and farming for a panel discussion recorded at the 2025 Abergavenny Food Festival. Beca Lyne-Pirkis is a food writer and broadcaster; Patrick Holden is an organic farmer and founder of the Sustainable Food Trust; Carwyn Graves is a Welsh food historian and author; and Sue Pritchard leads the Food, Farming and Countryside Commission. Together, they explore what is currently making Wales’s approach to food distinctive — and what lessons it might offer for the future of food across the UK.Presented by Sheila Dillon
Produced for BBC Audio in Bristol by Natalie Donovan

Wales's Secret Ingredient: Lessons from Cymru on the Future of Food

As sales of matcha continue to boom, Leyla Kazim traces the story of the powdered green tea from centuries-old Japanese tradition to global health trend phenomenon. We look behind the social media videos and headlines to find out more about the reported matcha shortage, how the matcha supply chain is reacting, and ask what might happen next. Also in the programme Leyla learns about some of the misconceptions we have about matcha, including the issues around the term 'ceremonial grade'; we have a report from Kyoto Obubu Tea Farms in Japan about how tea farmers are coping with the sudden boom; and Leyla digs into the health claims about matcha with dietician and scientist at King's College London, Dr Emily Leeming.Presented by Leyla Kazim and produced by Sophie Anton for BBC Audio in Bristol.

The Rise of Matcha

Sheila Dillon investigates the growing number of food tours and trails in the UK as consumers show more and more interest in the provenance of what is on their plate.  She heads to Melton Mowbray in Leicestershire – a town that boasts the title of Rural Capital Of Food - and joins a walking tour that spans pork pie producers, stilton sellers, a samosa wallah and a prizewinning brewery.   Produced by Robin Markwell for BBC Audio in Bristol

Follow the Food: The Rise of Food Tourism

Jaega Wise heads to the Isle of Man to find out what’s driving a growing movement to produce more of the island’s own food, and why its approach might matter beyond its shores. She hears about the challenges facing producers, how the fishing industry is adapting, and what it means to work within a UNESCO biosphere.  Just 6% of food bought in Manx shops is locally produced — a figure the Manx NFU is campaigning to change. Meanwhile, the Government has announced reforms to primary school meals after discovering half of the food served was ultra-processed, and very little was locally sourced. Contributors: 
Chris Waller, NOA Bakehouse
Sue King, author of "Ham & Eggs and Turtle Soup: A Slice of Manx Culinary History"
Jack Emmerson – Sea Fisheries Policy Manager, Isle of Man Government (DEFA)
Dr David Beard – Chief Executive, Manx Fish Producers Organisation
Elizabeth Townsend and Nick Scarffe, Kerroo Brewing Co
Helen Crosbie, Isle of Man Sea Salt
Jenny Shepherd and Rawdon Hayne – Isle of Man Charcuterie
Sarah Comish, Manx National Farmers’ Union (NFU)
Shirley Callow, Isle of Man Creamery
Daphne Caine, Minister for Education, Sport and Culture, Isle of Man Government
Pippa Lovell, Chef, The Laxey Glen. Presented by Jaega Wise
Produced for BBC Audio in Bristol by Natalie Donovan

Manx Made

Historian Polly Russell and chef Pam Brunton explore Scotland's landscapes to answer the question, 'what is modern Scottish food?'. 
On a road trip through landscapes, old and new, they encounter deer stalkers, robot milking machines and a bean to bar chocolate maker. Why is it we end up with a fixed view of what a nation's food culture looks and tastes like and how easy is it to create a change? Produced by Dan Saladino.

Cooking From Landscape: Rethinking Scottish Food

Butter superfan Felicity Cloake asks whether the movement against ultra-processed foods is linked to a recent rise in popularity of her favourite kitchen staple. Her investigations take her to the rich grasslands of the West Country as she visits Wyke Farms, Quicke's and Ivy House Farm Dairy.  She looks at how flavoured butter is taking off and finds out more about the tradition of cheesemakers making whey butter.Professor Sarah Berry from King's College London gives advice on how much butter we should be eating as part of a healthy diet and food historian Regina Sexton looks at the relationship between butter and Ireland. Felicity also has a turn at making her own butter using an historic dash churn at The Butter Museum in Cork.  Presented by Felicity Cloake
Produced in Bristol for BBC Audio by Robin Markwell
The programme features a short excerpt of the song "Please Leave My Butter Alone" by Elsie Carlisle.

Butter Is Back

It’s been nearly 50 years since invasive American Signal Crayfish were introduced to the UK, and we still haven’t figured out how to get rid of them. Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall joins Sheila Dillon to meet a man who believes the way to control their spread is to get more people eating them — but not everyone’s convinced. These crustaceans are so invasive that ecologists worry encouraging consumption could lead to further spread. Meanwhile, in parts of the Southern US, crayfish are a beloved delicacy. Sheila heads to a crayfish boil in London to see how that tradition is being recreated here.Presented by Sheila Dillon
Produced by Natalie Donovan for BBC Audio in Bristol

The Crayfish Question

Since the early 2000s, one type of shop has quietly become a regular feature on British high streets: the Polski sklep – or Polish shop.Known for their smoked sausages, sour pickles, and wide selection of herbal teas, these shops offer more than just food. With Polish people now the largest non-British nationality in the UK, and Polish the next most spoken language after English and Welsh, they also reflect a broader story of migration and community. Jaega Wise explores what makes these stores worth visiting for everyone, not just Poles, and how they’re adapting to the challenges facing the high street.To find out more, Jaega visits Peterborough – a city she once lived in and remembers for its vibrant Polish community. There, she explores the busy Europol supermarket and a popular home-style restaurant, Pierogarnia. In Walthamstow, she meets cultural historian and second-generation Pole Dr Kasia Tomasiewicz, who explains the background behind the herbal teas and how they connect her to her ancestors. And back in Hackney, Jaega makes pierogi at home with food writer Zuza Zak, using a mix of Polish and British ingredients. She also hears from Dr Kathy Burrell, Professor of Migration Geographies at the University of Liverpool. Producer: Eliza Lomas

Polski Sklep: A Recent History of the Polish Shop

Dan Saladino explores stories of food and 'the elements', the theme of this year's Oxford Food Symposium. Expect surprising insights on earth, fire, air, water and much more.For more than forty years the Symposium has celebrated, explored and shared research by scholars, enthusiastic amateurs, writers, and chefs from around the world, all united in the belief that food deserves to be treated as a serious, as well as a joyful, subject. Hundreds of 'symposiasts' gather at St Catherine's College each year, to submit papers, deliver presentations, discuss ideas and to dine - all based around a theme.  Dan talks to some of the presenters about their interpretation of 'food and the elements'. Some took inspiration from the classical world (earth, air, fire and water), others explored food and the periodic table or climate and weather.  In this 'mix-tape edition', stories range from the use of fire and ashes in food cultures around the world to the Trump administration's plan to remove 'chemical elements' from the diets of Americans. For more information about the symposium and this year's papers, go to: https://www.oxfordsymposium.org.uk/Produced and presented by Dan Saladino.

Food and the Elements

Sheila Dillon looks into claims that big food companies wield too much influence over government decisions and public health. The episode follows news from the youth-led campaign group BiteBack2030, which says its billboard campaign has been effectively silenced. The group recently organised a mock inquiry in Parliament, involving MPs, to share concerns about how junk food advertising and sponsorship are affecting the health of children in the UK.Sheila also hears from a group of protesters who marched to Downing Street this month, shouting the message “Fight Fake Food.” Organiser Rosalind Rathouse, from the Cookery School on Portland Street, says the public needs to know how the food they’re eating is damaging their health. She is calling on everyone to learn to cook this summer. During the march, campaigners delivered a list of wishes to Downing Street, highlighting the changes they’d like to see in food policy.Also featured are Jennifer Richardson from The BMJ, which has been investigating the impact of commercial influence on children’s health, and Cathy Cliff from the Soil Association, who submitted a Freedom of Information request to uncover the extent of food industry lobbying and its effect on government policy.Presented by Sheila Dillon
Produced for BBC Audio in Bristol by Natalie Donovan

Big Food, Big Power

The adventures of Barbara and Tom Good in Surbiton brought self-sufficiency to the small screens of the nation.  Fifty years on from the airing of that first episode of The Good Life, Leyla Kazim is about to embark on her own sustainable living dream as she seeks to live off the land when she moves from London to Portugal.   So what lessons can she learn from The Goods about food production – whether that’s animal husbandry or growing-your-own?  And will she succeed when she can’t even speak the language?  Leyla visits Groundswell, the Regenerative Agriculture Festival, in urgent search of advice.  She speaks to Andy Cato from Wildfarmed, Rob Hopkins of the Transition Network and Helen Browning from the Soil Association.  She also explores the forest garden of Martin Crawford in Devon as she plans her own food forest.Produced by Robin Markwell for BBC Audio in Bristol.Contains clips of The Good Life from Series 1, Episode 1 "Plough Your Own Furrow", Series 1 Episode 2 "Say Little Hen..." and Series 1 Episode 4 "Pig's Lib"

The New Good Life

Dan Saladino explores new science that's revealing the complexity hidden within our food.In New York City he meets the team mapping previously unknown edible compounds in fruits and vegetables, many of which are thought to have health benefits. Will delving deeper into the 'dark matter' of food make it possible to produce food that's better for both us and the planet? Also in the programme is Franco Fubini, founder of the food businesses and author of In Search of The Perfect Peach, who for 20 years has been in search of ingredients with exceptional flavour. It's through flavour, Fubini believes, that we can create a food system that's better for us and also the planet. Dan also meets Dan Kitteridge, who, through the Bio-nutrient Association, is convinced that quality of food, and its nutrient density is dependent on the quality of the soil microbiome it grows in. Produced and presented by Dan Saladino.

The Periodic Table of Food

In this episode, social media chef and queen of potatoes, Poppy O'Toole, explores the world of her favourite ingredient, the Potato. Last year, Poppy appeared on Mastermind, choosing the history of the potato as her specialist subject. Let’s just say… it didn’t quite go to plan. So now, she’s joining the team at The Food Programme to fill in the gaps in her knowledge.Along the way, she meets historian Professor Rebecca Earle from the University of Warwick, who explains how potatoes travelled from the Andes to Europe. She visits Lima, a Peruvian restaurant in London, where she speaks with sous chef William Coz about how potatoes remain central to Peruvian cuisine. Dr Stef de Haan from the International Potato Center shares how Peru continues to cultivate thousands of potato varieties.In Suffolk, Poppy visits James Foskett’s farm to discover how he grows both organic and conventional potatoes. And she speaks with Dr Jean Beagle Ristaino—known by some as “the Sherlock of Spuds”—about her work investigating the pathogen behind the Irish Potato Famine.The programme includes archive from Mastermind which is co-produced for BBC 2 by  Hindsight and Hat Trick.Presented by Poppy O'Toole
Produced for BBC Audio in Bristol by Natalie Donovan

Potatoes with Poppy O'Toole

With the price of olive oil soaring in the shops after drought disrupted production in Spain, Leyla Kazim looks into the English farms planting olive groves in the hope of bottling their own oil.  She meets a farmer in Essex who explains that English growing conditions are more suitable than you might think and discovers a producer in Cornwall who has already started pressing his own extra virgin olive oil.    So will olive oil from Essex or Cornwall become the new English sparkling wine?Dan Saladino reports from Sicily where hotter conditions due to climate change are presenting new challenges for growers.   Food historian Dr Annie Gray debunks some of the myths around olive oil consumption in England and Leyla learns the correct way to approach an oil-tasting from one of the country’s biggest suppliers.    Produced by Robin Markwell for BBC Audio in Bristol.

English Olive Oil

Dan Saladino meets pioneering thinkers to hear about future food ideas ranging from edible protein sourced from chicken feathers to crops inoculated with fungi capable of tolerating a hotter climate.Produced and presented by Dan Saladino

A Food Revolution in Eight (More) Ideas

In this episode of 'A Life Through Food', Sheila Dillon meets one of the most provocative scientific minds of the last half-century: Professor Michael Crawford. Now in his 90s, Crawford’s pioneering research into the brain and nutrition has reshaped how we understand the essential role of food—especially Omega-3 fatty acids—in human development and health.Long before Omega-3 became a buzzword on supermarket shelves, Crawford was uncovering its vital connection to brain function. His work, often at odds with mainstream science, has led to over 300 peer-reviewed papers and three books challenging conventional theories of human evolution and nutrition.The programme also features chef and broadcaster Rick Stein, who reflects on Crawford’s influence and the importance of sustainable seafood. And we hear from Dr Anneli Löfstedt, a post-doctoral researcher at the University of Oxford’s Smith School of Enterprise and Environment, who is building on Crawford’s legacy by exploring the links between nutrition, sustainability, and the future of food systems.Presented by Sheila Dillon
Produced by Natalie Donovan for BBC Audio in Bristol.

Professor Michael Crawford: A Life through Food

The BBC Food & Farming Awards are back for 2025! Jaega Wise visits River Cottage HQ to meet returning head judge Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall. They talk about what Hugh is looking for in this year's awards, what makes the West Country a special place for food and farming and some of the history of River Cottage. She also visits previous winners Westcombe Dairy who not only have been thriving since winning in their award, they have been something of an incubation hub sharing a site with other artisanal food businesses like Brickell's Ice Cream, Woodshedding brewery and Landrace Bakery. She also talks to Farming Today's Charlotte Smith and Mali Harries who plays Natasha Archer on the Archers about the Farming for the Future Award.To nominate in this year's awards go to bbc.co.uk/foodawards where you can also find the terms and privacy notice. You have between 6am on 6th June and midday 30th June 2025 to nominate.Presented by Jaega Wise
Produced in Bristol by Sam Grist

The BBC Food & Farming Awards 2025 Launch

Campaigners are calling for the ingredients of sourdough to be laid out in law.  So are there too many loaves on sale that are more sourfaux than sourdough?  Leyla Kazim investigates.This programme features a visit to the Batch event at the Long Table in Stroud to meet baker and author David Wright as well as Chris Young from the Real Bread Campaign.  Nutritionist Dr Vanessa Kimbell discusses how sourdough impacts on our gut health and bread historian Professor Steven Kaplan chews over whether more regulation is strictly necessary and questions how it would be enforced.Cereal scientist Stanley Cauvain shines a light on a huge moment in British baking - the invention of the Chorleywood process - and Jules Chambe from the award-winning Wild Frog Bakehouse in Oxfordshire looks to his native France where the government did act to protect the beloved baguette.Produced in Bristol by Robin Markwell for BBC Audio
Featuring the "Happy Knocker-Upper" 1960s Mother's Pride television advert featuring Dusty Springfield

Sourfaux

Dan Saladino hears from coffee industry insiders about the current spike in global prices.Produced and presented by Dan Saladino.

Coffee Crisis: Why are Prices Breaking Records?

Leyla Kazim visits York, the UK's 'chocolate city', on the centenary of Joseph Rowntree’s death, to find out how the Quaker entrepreneur pioneered both social reform and iconic chocolate brands like Smarties and Kit Kat.Today, many independent chocolate makers still call York home, as do some of the word's biggest multinational confectionary makers. Leyla Kazim wanders through York Chocolate Festival to trace the city’s unique chocolate heritage and find out what changed when global companies got involved.As the so-called 'Dubai chocolate' drives a frenzy of demand for filled bars and imitations, Leyla meets a Newcastle chocolate maker with a penchant for wacky flavours and who inspired the original sell-out hit.Leyla also hears how falling global production and high prices of cocoa could be the end of chocolate as we know it.Produced by Nina Pullman for BBC Audio in Bristol.

From York to Dubai: The Rise of Chocolate

Baroness Floella Benjamin once said “childhood lasts a lifetime” and our experiences of school dinners can shape how we eat for the rest of our lives.    In this edition of The Food Programme Sheila Dillon investigates the importance of those early food memories with the help of Dr Heather Ellis from the School Meals Project.  The Project says its aim is to produce the first ever comprehensive history of school meals across the different nations of the United Kingdom   The programme makes a trip to the Food Museum in Suffolk to see a landmark exhibition around school food and Sheila pays a visit to a forward-thinking school in West London which bakes its own bread with flour made from the wheat that it grows just outside the school kitchen!Presented by Sheila Dillon
Produced in Bristol for BBC Audio by Robin MarkwellFeaturing an archive clip from BBC Breakfast in April 2025 with Education Secretary Bridget Phillipson MP
Also a brief extract from the book The Farmer's Wife: My Life In Days by Helen Rebanks

School Dinners - Past, Present and Future

With the Government pledging to overhaul the way food is sourced for public institutions like hospitals, schools, prisons, and army bases, Sheila Dillon explores how these changes could be implemented and why they are deemed essential by many.Sheila visits St Peter’s Hospital in Chertsey, Surrey, where chef Raouf Mansour has transformed the canteen for staff and visitors. After bringing the operation in-house post-Covid, the hospital began collaborating with local suppliers to provide fresh, seasonal produce. Raouf emphasises that retraining chefs to prepare nutritious, mezze-style meals has been crucial in encouraging staff to dine at the restaurant. The hospital is also working on plans to revamp patient meals, which are all prepared off-site, by working with smaller local caterers who can better meet some of the specific needs of patients there.Following her visit, Sheila returns to the studio to discuss whether the changes in Chertsey could signal a broader trend. She is joined by:Kevin Morgan, Professor of Governance and Development at Cardiff University and author of "Serving the Public: The Good Food Revolution in Schools, Hospitals, and Prisons"
Kath Dalmeny, Chief Executive of Sustain
Katie Palmer from Food Sense Wales, who is working on the Welsh Veg in Schools Project
Derek Wright from Blackpool Catering Services, which has expanded its school meal provision over the past five years, with on-site chefs and locally sourced produce.Presented by Sheila Dillon
Produced in Bristol for BBC Audio by Natalie Donovan

Feeding the Nation

The restaurant trade is fickle and can be a "here today, gone tomorrow" business.  But a very small number of restaurants seem to have been with us for ever.  Dan Saladino explores the secrets of the world's oldest restaurants.

The World's Historic Restaurants

Sheila Dillon hears the first exclusive readings from a Tudor ‘pamphlet of cheese’ that details the cheesemaking traditions of the 16th century, and reveals how cheese was seen as a nutrient-rich health food - from digestion aid to wound cleaner. Fast-forward to today, and Sheila visits Yorkshire cheesemongers Andy and Kathy Swinscoe to help recreate one of these historic recipes by hand in their dairy, as they discuss the significance of cheese history and how milk and cheese have a ’terroir’ just like wine. While the Tudors believed cheese was inherently good for you, modern-day science is still exploring the evidence. Now, cheese scientists are producing ground-breaking research investigating links between cheese and the health of our hearts and gut microbiome. But making cheese today is a tough job, from complying with food safety rules to the challenges of setting up and maintaining a small business. Sheila speaks to renowned cheesemaker Martin Gott to hear the strange tale of how gave up his career in the UK to set up the first ever organic creamery in Oman. Are we losing our cheesemakers just at the point when we’re rediscovering more about its potential health benefits?Sheila’s journey to find out how our cheese heritage faltered takes her to the Middle East, Japan and finally back to Yorkshire, where a new raw milk cheesemaker sparks hope for the future. Presented by Sheila Dillon and produced by Nina Pullman for BBC Audio in Bristol.

Is our cheese heritage ancient history?

Dan Saladino finds out how a family farm in west Cork became one of the world's most influential cookery schools. Featuring Darina and Rachel Allen, Rory O'Connell and JR Ryall. Produced and presented by Dan Saladino.

Darina Allen: A Life Through Food

In this second episode from Copenhagen, Sheila Dillon explores why Denmark leads the way in organic food consumption. In 2023, nearly 12% of all food bought in Denmark was organic—one of the highest levels in the world. In the UK, that figure is just 1.5%. But how did Denmark get here? And can the organic movement keep growing as the conversation shifts toward climate concerns and plant-based eating?Sheila meets the people shaping Denmark’s food future, from organic farmers to chefs and researchers. She also asks how does this apparent national embrace of organic food sit alongside Denmark’s industrial farming, including its vast pork industry?Featuring conversations with:
•	Trine Hahnemann – Chef, writer, and campaigner
•	Trine Krebs – Organic farmer and Green Chef at The Food Organisation of Denmark
•	Prof. Ole Mouritsen – Gastrophysicist researching how to encourage more plant-based eating
•	Søren Buhl Steiniche – Head chef at EAT, a public kitchen serving Copenhagen’s schools
•	Heidi Svømmekjær – Copenhagen-based food writer and home cookPresented by Sheila Dillon
Produced for BBC Audio in Bristol by Natalie Donovan

Denmark's Food Revolution?

Restaurant critic and lifelong Charlton Athletic fan Jimi Famurewa finds out how football clubs are upping their game when it comes to serving food for their fans.  He’ll taste the world at AFC Wimbledon’s Food Village, hear how Forest Green Rovers went vegan and discover the secret liquor behind Leyton Orient’s pie and mash.   Food writers Jack Peat and Daniel Gray pitch in with their thoughts on a world that has moved far beyond Bovril and burnt burgers.Presented by Jimi Famurewa
Produced in Bristol for BBC Audio by Robin MarkwellThe Bovril Song was composed by Roger Jackson and Phil Nicholl and performed by Sing! Cambridge in 2013  
Football commentary courtesy of BBC Radio London and BBC Radio Nottingham

When Saturday Comes

Five years on from the first Covid lockdown Dan Saladino asks if our food supply can withstand more shock to the system? Is there resilience to face another pandemic or even war?Produced and presented by Dan Saladino.

Are We Prepared? Could the UK Feed Itself in a Crisis?

Bradford is this year’s UK City of Culture - but what does food have to do with it? Sheila Dillon visits the city to meet market traders, chefs and restaurateurs to find out how its industrial past has influenced the thriving food culture of today. She visits Bradford’s St James wholesale market to discover how the Asian restaurant trade has been integral to the market’s survival, before eating breakfast at The Sweet Centre, which serves the same Kashmiri breakfast speciality as it did for millworkers in the 60s. Two food projects are harnessing the vibrant multicultural nature of Bradford as part of its City of Culture celebrations. The Bradford Selection, orchestrated by artists Sonia Sandhu and Harry Jelley, tells the stories of Bradford communities through a series of biscuits. Meet My Mothers is a recipe book project representing the diverse food cultures in Bradford, as participant coordinator Aamta Waheed tells Sheila at the Women Zone community centre. Renowned Yorkshire food historian Peter Brears meets Sheila for a tea and some traditional pork ‘savoury duck’ to talk about pre-industrial food of the Bradford district. Meanwhile, on BBC One, Harry Virdee is the eponymous detective star of thriller series Virdee, written by Bradford native A.A.Dhand. Sheila speaks to the bestselling author to find out how he wrote specific south Asian food and drink traditions into the series and his own childhood food memories of growing up in the city. How important is the city’s food history, economics and culture to its hopes for regeneration? Shanaz Gulzar, creative director of Bradford 2025, summarises the city’s belief in food as social cohesion and the confidence that the city feels after winning the title. Presenter: Sheila Dillon 
Producer: Nina Pullman

Bradford: City of Food Culture

Sheila Dillon joins diners eating together in Manchester and Copenhagen, and hears why some think we should be making more time in the UK for eating communally.During World War II, British Restaurants provided nutritious, affordable meals across the UK. Endorsed by Winston Churchill, they ensured good food was accessible to all. Now, some believe this model should return.Professor Bryce Evans from Liverpool Hope University explains why reviving communal dining could help tackle today’s cost-of-living crisis. In Manchester, we hear from "The Manc Kitchen" - a pilot inspired by MP Ian Byrne’s "Scouse Kitchen" and his "Right to Food" campaign. Similar initiatives are emerging across the UK.Sheila Dillon travels to Copenhagen, "the capital of communal dining," to see how the Danes have embraced eating together. She visits Absalon, a repurposed church where 200 people dine each night, and Grønne Eng (Green Meadows), a co-housing community where 190 residents cook and share meals communally four times a week. Even in workplaces, communal dining is the norm—Sheila eats with a team of architects at a long table.Food writer Heidi Svømmekjær explains how Denmark’s long, dark winters have shaped this culture, making shared meals a way to foster warmth and connection.With food insecurity and loneliness on the rise, Sheila asks if communal restaurants be a solution? Presented by Sheila Dillon
Produced in Bristol for BBC Audio by Natalie Donovan

Communal Dining

Two of the country's largest wholesale markets are on the brink of closure.  The City of London Corporation has decided to shut the historic meat market at Smithfield and the fish market at Billingsgate, bringing to an end centuries of food history.   Sheila Dillon is given a tour of Smithfield market by the historian Matthew Green who describes how Smithfield features in the work of Charles Dickens and was once described as the "kitchen of the universe" by the writer Ned Ward in 1702.The programme hears from the Smithfield traders who work through the night butchering and selling meat to restaurants and shops across London, the South East of England and beyond.    There has been considerable opposition to the closure of the markets.  More than 37,000 people have signed a petition asking the City of London Corporation to keep the markets where they are including Alicia Weston who we meet at Ridley Road street market in East London.  Here fishmongers are concerned about where they will source their supplies if Billingsgate closes.  The City of London Corporation chairman Chris Hayward responds.Finally, the author of Hungry City Carolyn Steel and Professor Tim Lang from City University reflect on the importance of wholesale markets in strengthening food supply chains as well as their contribution to the social and cultural fabric of a place.Presented by Sheila Dillon
Produced for BBC Audio in Bristol by Robin Markwell

Closing London's 'Kitchen of the Universe'

It's a term used by the smallest farmers and the world's biggest food businesses. But what does 'regenerative agriculture' mean?Produced and presented by Dan Saladino.

Regenerative farming and food. What does it mean?

Sheila Dillon revisits the idea of our grannies’ cooking and how it shapes us, hearing from listeners who sent in their own stories. Why does learning to cook from your granny seem to be such a powerful experience? What about those grannies who leapt at the chance technology offered to escape the endless cycle of cooking from scratch? And – for those of us who feel we’re relying too much on processed food -  can we find a granny substitute to help us put down the takeaway menu and pick up a peeler?Guests include:
Dr Polly Russell - food historian
Alicia Weston - founder of Bags of Taste
Sophie Beckett -  Public Health Research Officer at Birmingham Museums Trust
Jonny Murphy "The Hungry Hooker" We'd like to thank all of the listeners who wrote in to us following the broadcast of the programme "Nan the Wiser", but we'd like to say a special thanks to Matthew, Lynn, Mary, Tony, Marie, Peter, Rob and Giselle. Presented by Sheila Dillon
Produced in Bristol for BBC Audio by Beth Sagar-Fenton. The Assistant Producer was Jo Peacey.Archive from Birmingham's Food and Drink Oral Histories Project:
Interviewee: Doris Evans, 1984. From the City Sound Archive, courtesy of Birmingham Museums Trust
Interviewee: John Baker, 1984. From the City Sound Archive, courtesy of Birmingham Museums Trust

Second to Nan

It's 2025, and the same old questions are still being asked about food and health—how do we get people eating better, reduce obesity, improve health, and ease pressure on the NHS? Despite decades of policies and campaigns, the challenge remains. In this episode, Sheila Dillon is joined in the studio by three people whose work is dedicated to finding answers: Dr Dolly Van Tulleken, a visiting researcher at Cambridge University's MRC Epidemiology Unit, who has examined UK government obesity policy, documenting its repeated failures and interviewed several leaders about what can be learned from them; Anna Taylor, head of the Food Foundation, whose organisation has been researching the impact of poor diets, particularly on those living in poverty; and Ben Reynolds, formerly of Sustain, where he played a key role in some of the most successful food campaigns and is now working on food and farming policy across Europe as Executive Director of the Institute for European Environmental Policy.Also featured are Henry Dimbleby, author of The National Food Strategy; Welsh food historian Carwyn Graves; and two Food Ambassadors for The Food Foundation Dominic Watters and Magda Rechnio. Together, they discuss what’s gone wrong, what’s worked, and, as the new government announces plans for a fresh food strategy, what must be put in place to ensure it delivers real change.Presented by Sheila Dillon
Produced for BBC Audio in Bristol by Natalie Donovan

Broken Policies

What's behind the rise and rise of low alcohol and alcohol free drinks? The sector grew by a quarter last year alone, fuelled by our changing relationship with alcohol.  More than fifteen million people are thought to have considered taking part in Dry January this year and younger drinkers in particular are turning away from alcohol and embracing alcohol-free versions of beer, wine and spirits or entirely new drinks coming onto the market.In this programme Jaega Wise considers the changes in the drinks industry.  She eavesdrops on an alcohol-free workshop with the mindful drinking movement Club Soda and speaks to its founder Laura Willoughby.  She hears from the alcohol-free beer brand Lucky Saint and the market research company Kam on our changing drinking patterns, including the trend for zebra-striping - alternating between alcoholic and non-alcoholic drinks.Then Jaega visits Bristol to find out how breweries are using different techniques to make alcohol-free beer that is far superior to the much-derided watery and flavourless versions of old.    The Bristol Beer Factory tells her that their alcohol-free brand now makes up a fifth of sales.  At Wiper & True nearby, they reckon within five years around half of all their beers will be alcohol-free.The movement towards "low and no" drinks means there is now a World Alcohol Free Awards as their co-founder Chrissie Parkinson explains and Dash Lilley from the Three Spirit brand talks about how some drinks makers are looking to very different ingredients from the plant world to create original flavours.Presented by Jaega Wise
Produced in Bristol for BBC Audio by Robin Markwell

Low and No

Want to lose weight? How much can you achieve through exercise? Dan Saladino investigates with the help of Mike Keen, a chef and Arctic explorer. Mike has had numerous adventures in Greenland, including kayaking thousands of miles, and sometimes doing nothing at all. What happened to his weight on this trips has left him puzzled. They enlist the help three experts, Chris Van Tulleken, author of Ultra Processed People; Nigel Smith of the UK Sports Institute and Andrew Jenkinson, surgeon and author of Why We Eat too Much and How to Eat.Produced and presented by Dan Saladino.

Food and Exercise: A Puzzle

Emulsifiers are among the most common food additives found in ultra-processed foods (UPFs), a much-discussed category of foods commonly defined as those made using manufactured ingredients. They are often packaged and have a long shelf life. Research examining the impact of diets high in UPFs suggests higher rates of obesity and diseases such as type 2 diabetes, heart disease, and cancer.However, discussions about labeling these foods as "ultra-processed" have also sparked debates about whether their negative effects are primarily due to their high fat, sugar, and salt content, or whether they stem from the effects of processing itself, particularly the additives they contain.In this episode, Jaega Wise explores one of the most commonly used additives in UPFs—emulsifiers. She investigates how they work, what they do, their history, associated health concerns, and their potential future developments.Featuring: Nicola Lando and Ross Brown from the online specialty cooking supplies company Sous Chef; Tim Spector, professor of epidemiology at King’s College London and co-founder of the personalized health app Zoe; food historian Annie Gray; John Ruff, Chief Science Advisor at the Institute of Food Technologists; Professor Barry Smith at the University of London’s Centre for the Study of the Senses; Professor Anwesha Sarkar, an expert in colloids and surfaces at Leeds University’s School of Food Science and Nutrition; and Dr. Benoit Chassaing, a research director at The Institut Pasteur in Paris, who studies microbiota and the health impacts of certain emulsifiers.Presented by Jaega Wise
Produced in Bristol for BBC Audio by Natalie Donovan

What's this emulsifier doing in my food?

How will Artificial Intelligence (AI) transform the food industry?  Experts say it's already having an effect - whether through self-service checkouts or the algorithms that determine which recipes you see online or the way supermarkets are using it to predict the next big food trend.Jaega Wise heads to the Waitrose Headquarters in Berkshire to find out how their product development team is using AI to inform which ingredients they stock on the shelves.  She also talks to the firm Tastewise which makes software that calculates food trends by analysing social media and online menus.A restaurant in Glasgow is already using embodied AI in the form of robots which serve their customers.  Jaega witnesses the robots in action and finds diners are divided over their use.  She also talks to consumer affairs journalist Harry Wallop about how supermarkets use our data and the futurist Tracey Follows who gives us her take on what might happen next in the world of AI.  Jaega also hears the tipped top food trends for 2025. Presented by Jaega Wise
Produced for BBC Audio in Bristol by Robin Markwell

Food and AI

In the year 2000 there were barely any food banks in the UK but today there are nearly three thousand.  So what's behind the sharp rise and how did it get to a point where the government says we have "a mass dependence" on food banks?  In this episode Jaega Wise tells the story of the food bank.  She hears from those using the Bristol North West food bank.  They talk openly about how the food bank helped turn their lives around.  She also visits a "social supermarket" in south London where people on benefits are able to shop from donated stock cheaply.  Dr Andy Williams from Cardiff University discusses how the food bank model was imported from the United States where it had its roots in the Great Depression and Emma Revie of the Trussell Trust gives her view on why there has been such a surge in food bank usage.Jaega also visits Middlesbrough where the former Prime Minister Gordon Brown is opening a "Multibank" - these are warehouses full of donated stock that includes food and other household goods.  Gordon Brown talks about his ambition to open Multibanks all over the country to tackle the growing problem of food insecurity.Presented by Jaega Wise
Produced for BBC Audio in Bristol by Robin Markwell

Food Bank Nation

Dan Saladino explores the impact a Christmas Carol and other Charles Dickens novels have had on festive eating, with food historian Ivan Day and food writer Penelope Vogler. Produced and presented by Dan Saladino.

The Dickens Effect: How the Writer Influenced Food at Christmas

Christmas is a time for giving, and for many charities, that often means food. Jaega Wise explores the tradition and looks into the planning that goes into festive food donations.Food historian Carwyn Graves explains how the custom of giving food at Christmas has evolved over the centuries, and why the season inspires so many to give back to their communities.In Aberdare, we meet the team behind Company at Christmas, who host a festive feast for anyone who doesn’t want to spend Christmas Day alone. The new CEO of Fareshare discusses how the charity manages the extra surplus food during the festive season, while Tim O’Malley from Nationwide Produce Ltd explains how his company has been working to ensure as little fresh food goes to waste as possible.In Glasgow, Social Bite founder Josh Littlejohn discusses why Christmas has become a cornerstone of his social enterprise and charity, alongside one of the volunteers who will be there to greet guests. Meanwhile, Lesley Gates in Bridgwater—known locally as Bibbidi-Bobbidi-Boo—shows how she’s helping people make the most of their Christmas dinner ingredients through practical demonstrations on saving money and reducing waste.And in Cumbria, Rahina Borthwick, founder of the Grange-Over-Sands Community Foodshare, reflects on the importance of giving within her seaside town. She shares how their community space has become an important gathering point, including for Ukrainian refugees to celebrate Christmas together.Presented by Jaega Wise
Produced for BBC Audio in Bristol by Natalie Donovan.

Christmas: The Gift of Food

Restaurant businesses say it's getting tougher to survive? So what does it take to thrive? Dan Saladino speaks to leading chefs, some successful, others less so.Featuring Mark Hix, Cyrus Todiwala, Imogen and Kieron Waite, Julian Dunkerton, Simon Rogan and Hugh Corcoran.  Produced and presented by Dan Saladino.

Restaurants: A Survival Guide

Join Sheila Dillon at the Old Fruitmarket in Glasgow for the BBC Food and Farming Awards 2024.The awards honour those who have done most to promote the cause of good food and drink.  Our judging panel this year is chaired by chef and broadcaster Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall. Presented by Sheila Dillon and produced by Robin Markwell for BBC Audio in Bristol.

BBC Food and Farming Awards 2024

Sheila Dillon explores how our grannies' cooking can shape who we are—and asks what we lose if we let go of those traditions. Guests include: Vicky Bennison, founder of YouTube channel Pasta Grannies.
Food Writer Clare Finney, and her Grandma Joan Fox. 
Chet Sharma, chef patron of Bibi, a restaurant named in honour of his grandmothers.
Dr Fiona Lavelle from Kings College London, who is researching cooking skills and how they're passed on. 
and Pauline Crosby, a grandma from Norfolk who is shortlisted for the title of "Nan from Del Monte". Presented by Sheila Dillon
Produced in Bristol for BBC Audio by Natalie Donovan

Nan the Wiser

Whether it's Turkish Delight, chocolate cake or ginger beer - some of our earliest food memories are shaped by the books we read.  In this episode Sheila Dillon goes down the rabbit-hole of children's fiction to discover why young readers find descriptions of food so compelling.  She hears from bestselling children's author Katherine Rundell who insists on eating the food she features in her books.  Katherine reveals what it's like to sample a tarantula in the name of fiction.  Professor of Children's Literature Michael Rosen unpicks the themes of greed, temptation and fear that surface in both his work and that of Roald Dahl.  At the Bath Children's Literature Festival Supertato author Sue Hendra and the illustrator Rob Biddulph talk about how children are drawn to the everydayness of food. The programme concludes in the Children's Bookshop in North London as the Food Programme presenters gather to discuss their favourite food books of the year for both younger and older readers.  They are assisted by the bookshop owner Sanchita Basu de Sarkar and the author of The Chronicles of Wetherwhy Anna James.Presented by Sheila Dillon
Produced for BBC Audio in Bristol by Robin MarkwellThis episode features extracts from The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe by CS Lewis read by Katherine Rundell, The Boy Next Door by Enid Blyton read by Miriam Margolyes (for BBC Radio 4 in 2008) and The Twits by Roald Dahl read by Kathy Burke (for Jackanory, BBC TV in 1995)

Once Upon a Mealtime

Five seafood species make up 80% of what is consumed in the UK – while at the same time the vast majority of what is caught in UK waters gets exported. But is that trend beginning to shift? In this episode, Sheila Dillon hears how initiatives like the "Plymouth Fishfinger" are hoping to make more use of fish that has often been seen as ‘by-catch’, and how seafood festivals are working to connect the public with local seafood, and can even help regenerate coastal communities. She also hears how the Fish in Schools Hero programme is working to get young people to try more seafood, and shows how simple it can be to prepare. Also featured are Ashley Mullenger (@thefemalefisherman) and tv chef and campaigner Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall. Presented by Sheila Dillon
Produced for BBC Audio in Bristol by Natalie Donovan.

Fishing for Change

Peter Frankopan, the author of Silk Roads and Earth Transformed, shares his insights with Dan Saladino on food, history and questions for our future. Produced and presented by Dan Saladino.

Frankopan on Food

In this exploration of backstage food, Jaega Wise meets actors and musicians to find out how they eat to fuel their performance.
The journey begins backstage at the Criterion Theatre in the West End, to meet stars of the hit musical Two Strangers (Carry a Cake Across New York) Dujonna Gift and Sam Tutty.
From there Jaega chats to baker Stacy Donnelly who’s provided thousands of real-life pies for Waitress the Musical on broadway, and gets advice from nutritionist and dietician Jasmine Challis on the best diet to fuel dancers.
She also heads to Joe Allen’s in Covent Garden, which is renowned for feeding Hollywood stars, and chats to author of “My Family and Other Rock stars”, Tiffany Murray, who’s written a memoir about watching her Mum Joan acting as chef for performers of the 70s such as Queen, Black Sabbath and David Bowie.
And finally she’ll be getting to know popstar couple Sophie Ellis-Bextor and Richard Jones, to talk riders, eating on tour, and the breakfast Sophie can’t do without.Presented by Jaega Wise and produced for BBC Audio Bristol by Tory Pope.

Back Stage Food – How performers eat before, during and after the show.

From the indigenous food of the USA to extraordinary cheeses from Ukraine, the wonders of fermentation to a revolutionary network of bakers, Dan Saladino shares stories of food and biodiversity at Slow Food's global gathering, Terra Madre.Produced and presented by Dan Saladino.

Food Stories From Terra Madre

Leyla Kazim explores how neurodivergence can affect the way people eat and experience food.The programme visits Aubergine Café in Cardiff, which is owned and run by autistic individuals, to meet the staff who explain why the café is needed and how it provides a better workplace for neurodivergent people.Leyla also speaks to expert dietitian David Rex, who supports children with autism facing eating challenges. She meets the parents of one of his patients, a four-year-old girl recently diagnosed with ARFID (Avoidant Restrictive Food Intake Disorder). David explains the role of "safe foods" and how they can both aid and complicate recovery.At The Holmewood School in north London, a specialist school for neurodivergent children, teachers and students share with Leyla how their new food technology kitchen is transforming some children's relationship with food, while also building skills and pride.And renowned chef Heston Blumenthal, owner of The Fat Duck restaurant, discusses his own experiences with ADHD and bipolar disorder.The programme also features:Kate Tchanturia, a professor of psychology in eating disorders at King's College London, who developed the PEACE pathway to support autistic people with anorexia.Lucinda Miller, clinical lead at NatureDoc and author of Brain Brilliance, a book of recipes and guidance for parents of neurodivergent children.Leanne Maskell, founder of ADHD Works, a company providing ADHD coaching.Presented by Leyla Kazim
Produced for BBC Audio in Bristol by Natalie Donovan