Biofuels are a way to make our cars, lorries and even planes run on renewable fuel. They’re often made from food crops. Globally 7% of cereal crops and 15% of vegetable oil crops are used to make biofuel – according to data from the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) and the United Nation’s Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO). As pressure on food prices and supply chains increase, some people are questioning why we turn food into fuel. In this programme we’ll be looking at the history of biofuels, why food crops have been used, and what alternatives may exist. Joining us are Daniel Kammen, Professor of Energy at University of California, Berkeley, who is currently serving as a senior advisor for energy and innovation in the Biden administration in the United States; Bernardo Gradin, the founder and CEO of Gran Bio, a company that produces biofuel made from sugar cane waste in Brazil; and Sailaja Nori, Chief Scientific Officer at Sea6 Energy, a company investigating the possibilities of biofuel made from seaweed in India and Indonesia. If you would like to get in touch with the show, please email: thefoodchain@bbc.co.uk Presented by Ruth Alexander. Produced by Beatrice Pickup. Additional reporting by Ashish Shama. (Image: Field of rapeseed crops behind picture of fuel nozzle. Rapeseed image credit: BBC. Fuel nozzle credit: Matthew Fearn/PA)
From tackling poverty and hunger, to maggot farming, to harnessing the power of seaweed - since 2017, The Food Chain has been celebrating and rewarding innovation in food. This year, as part of the BBC Food and Farming Awards, we're looking for a new champion who is trying to change the way we deal with our food. With the launch of our 2022 award, Ruth Alexander catches up with two previous winners, school meals project the Akshaya Patra Foundation, and Gabriella D’Cruz, marine conservationist, to find out how their work has progressed and how they are navigating huge global challenges like climate change, the Covid-19 pandemic and rising food prices. Do you know a remarkable person aged 18-30 who’s challenging the way we think about food? Nominate them for our Global Youth Champion Award 2022. Find out more and read our terms and privacy notice here: bbc.com/foodchain Nominations close at 23:00 GMT on Thursday, 4 August 2022. If you would like to get in touch with the show, pleas...
It’s not just fauna and flora, there’s a third, much overlooked kingdom of life – fungi. Fungi are essential for plant and soil health, and therefore our own survival. It’s not just the mushrooms that we eat, in this programme we celebrate fungi in all its forms. Fungi already play important roles in our food production and medicine, scientists are now investigating fungi based solutions for environmental pollution and waste disposal. We’re joined by biologist Merlin Sheldrake in the United Kingdom, author of ‘Entangled Life’, Giuliana Furci, mycologist and founder of the Fungi Foundation, the world’s first non-governmental organisation for the protection of fungi, based in Chile and Danielle Stevenson, a mycologist looking at soil toxicity in the United States. (Picture: fungi growing on a log. Credit: BBC) Presented by Ruth Alexander. Produced by Beatrice Pickup.
The internationally acclaimed poet and playwright Lemn Sissay OBE shares the story of his life by recalling five memorable dishes. His is an extraordinary story of family, and identity, lost and found. Born to an Ethiopian mother in the north of England and quickly placed into long-term foster care, Lemn was, for years, deprived of any knowledge of his heritage. His traumatic upbringing and subsequent search for his family and identity have informed much of his award-winning writing. In this programme, he tells Ruth Alexander about five memorable dishes that act as “positioning points” in his life to date. If you would like to get in touch with the show, please email: thefoodchain@bbc.co.uk (Picture: Lemn Sissay holding a cup of coffee. Credit: BBC) Producer: Elisabeth Mahy Researcher: Siobhan O’Connell
The menopause can cause all sorts of changes in your body – weight gain, hot flushes, sleeplessness and joint pain amongst others. Can what you eat help ease these symptoms? Officially a woman has reached menopause after 12 months without a period, however the transition itself can take years. Many women are prescribed hormone replacement therapy to tackle some of these symptoms, but lifestyle changes can also be helpful. In this programme we’re joined by three women who have experienced menopause and found some benefits in food. Elizabeth Ward is a registered dietitian based in the United States. She co-wrote a book called ‘The Menopause Diet Plan, A Natural Guide to Managing Hormones, Health and Happiness’. Fiona Staunton is a trained chef in Dublin, Ireland, who offers menopause cookery courses called ‘Fiona’s Food For Life’. Sue Mbaya is a Zimbabwean living in Ethiopia, she works in policy and governance, and presents the podcast ‘Pause for Menopause’. (Picture: woman u...
Aeroplane food doesn’t have the greatest reputation. Though it might be easy to blame an airline for serving lacklustre meals, the problem is more complex. Ruth Alexander discovers how the physics of flying wreaks havoc on our senses, the extraordinary lengths airlines have gone to try to dress up their food offering, and what it’s like to be the one serving you at your seat. And, she asks, will it ever be possible for all passengers to enjoy a tasty and nourishing meal in the air? Culinary historian, Richard Foss, chef-patron of Kitchen Theory, Jozef Youssef, and flight attendant, Kaylie Kay, join her for the ride. If you would like to get in touch with the show, please email: thefoodchain@bbc.co.uk (Picture: Child wearing headphones, eating food on board a plane. Credit: Getty/BBC) Producer: Elisabeth Mahy
Many chefs reach global status, with international demand for their latest book. Spare a thought for the translators, tasked with making their recipes accessible across barriers of language, culture and cuisine. Translating a recipe isn’t as simple as getting the dictionary out, you need to understand the different terminology and ingredients used in each country, whilst staying true to the original dish. We speak to Rosa Llopis, a Spanish translator who specialises in gastronomy and has translated a number of cookbooks. Cristina Cigognini is an Italian translator who usually specialises in literary translation of novels, but brought her skills to two cook books published by the chef Yotam Ottolenghi. Nawal Nasrallah is an Iraqi living in the US who translates medieval Arabic food texts, bringing those historic recipes to new audiences. If you would like to get in touch with the show, please email thefoodchain@bbc.co.uk. Presented by Ruth Alexander. Produced by Beatrice Pickup.
As Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II marks 70 years on the throne, we find out how you get a royal warrant. It’s an official seal of approval granted to the suppliers of goods and services to the Royal household. In London we visit one of Britain’s oldest cheese shops, Paxton & Whitfield, established in 1797. Managing director James Rutter tells us about the royal warrants the business has held since Queen Victoria was on the throne. We also visit Windsor, home to Windsor Castle one of the Queen’s many properties and Windsor & Eton brewery, which was awarded a royal warrant in 2018. Owner Will Calvert tells us what it takes to get this royal recognition. Royal Warrant holders can’t tell you much about what the royal household buys or likes, we try to fill in the gaps with royal and social historian Caroline Aston, features writer for Majesty Magazine. If you would like to get in touch with the show, please email: thefoodchain@bbc.co.uk Presented by Ruth Alexander. Produced by Beatr...
What do writers eat to stoke their creative fires? George Orwell is said to have had a penchant for plum pudding, while Agatha Christie was partial to sipping cream while at the typewriter. Food is fuel for an author but also serves as inspiration; often finding its way on to the page. In this episode of The Food Chain, Ruth Alexander speaks to novelists Avni Doshi and Abi Dare about their relationship with food and drink and how that influences their writing. If you would like to get in touch with the show, please email: thefoodchain@bbc.co.uk (Picture: Image of an apple and two bananas on a laptop screen. Credit: Getty/BBC) Producer: Elisabeth Mahy
Thinking about how food passes through your body may not be something that crosses your mind, but for people who have had stoma surgery, they’re aware of it at every meal. Tamasin Ford explores what it’s like to live with a stoma bag and how it redefines your relationship with food. We speak to three women who have had lifesaving operations to have a stoma bag fitted. The surgery tends to involve either the small or large intestine, with a stoma creating an opening on the skin of the abdomen to bypass the normal digestion process. Instead digested content is diverted to a pouch, worn on the outside of your body. We find out how they learned to eat again after having surgery, what they're doing to fight the stigma around stomas, and how they’re embracing their new lives with stoma bags. Joining us are Aisha Islam in Saudi Arabia, Alisa Kuivasto in Finland and Gill Castle in the United Kingdom. If you would like to get in touch with the show, please email: thefoodchain@bbc.co.uk (P...