Table Talk

There are fewer challenges bigger than trying to transform the global food system to make people and the planet healthier, but for Dr Gunhild Stordalen it's a challenge worth taking on. In this episode of the Table Talk podcast, Stefan Gates meets the founder of non-profit organisation EAT to discuss what motivates her, and how she stays driven to achieve her goals in the face of stiff opposition and vested interests. Gunhild started her career with a PhD in pathology/orthopaedic surgery - so what took her from being a doctor to taking such a keen interest in making the global food system sustainable? She says that whilst she was on the board of one of Scandinavia's biggest hotel companies, she tried to change the menu to be good for people and good for the planet. But her research turned up very little in the way of research and, crucially, no forum where all key stakeholders could meet. That led to her forming EAT, the non-profit platform for food system transformation. It held its first f

When Ben Christopherson was travelling, shortly after going to catering college, he knew he wanted to work in pastry - but nobody would let him have a go. "On the continent they just would not let you in the pastry kitchen if you didn't have experience or a qualification. I didn't have either of those," he tells Elisa Roche in this episode of the Career Conversations podcast series, made in association with the University of West London (UWL). But Ben says that experience is what drove him to get some qualifications in patisserie and go on to have a hugely successful career as a Head Pastry Chef. He ended up working at places like the luxury Goring Hotel, Harrods, and eventually launching his own business. All of that experience feeds into the work he does now as a lecturer in Food Studies and Hospitality at UWL. Ben describes the role as being a mix of teaching, competition training, creating new modules, liaising with industry, and of course, some admin. He says the variety is what he love

Millions of Muslims around the world have been marking the holy month of Ramadan, with celebrations reaching a crescendo with Eid al-Fitr. Food is central to Ramadan, and in this episode of the Table Talk podcast, we look at some of the history and tradition, but also the vital role of nutrition. We also pose some questions: Is the food industry in the UK doing enough to cater for people observing Ramadan? And is it missing an opportunity? Ramadan contributes more than £200m to the UK economy - but is enough being done to cater for specific needs? Listen to the full episodes to find out about the many different ways Ramadan is celebrated around the world, and why dates play such a central role in the breaking of the fast. We also look at the types of foods that are helpful when fasting during daylight hours, how some traditional dishes are being given a modern twist, and get some tips on how to make the traditional Turkish dessert Gullac. Mursal Saiq, Director and Co-Founder, Cue Point M

Just how important is the history of beer when it comes to looking at the history of human civilisation? It might seem like a flippant question, but there's evidence that beer-making has played a crucial role in our species' past. The art of beer making is thought to go back as much as 12,000 years, with different cultures and societies all around the world brewing their own varieties. In this episode of the Table Talk podcast, we delve into the history of one of the world's most popular drinks and look to what the future of beer might look like. Listen to the full episode to learn about different methods for making beer in far-flung parts of the world, find out the proper way to taste beer (and why an early start can be useful!), and why prohibition never took off in the UK. We also look at the history of the British pub, why they've played such a central role in our culture, and what their future prospects look like. Pete Brown, Author, Broadcaster, Consultant, Beer Lover Pete Brown is

What's it like to be Head of Sustainability at a huge company like Nestlé UK and Ireland? To mark Earth Day 2022, we've been speaking to the woman who holds that role, Dr Emma Keller. Emma started out doing a biology degree at Imperial College London but, by her own admission, "was useless in a laboratory". She says that's when she realised she was "much more interested in the bigger picture, the systems-change piece". After doing a Masters in Environmental Technology, she went on to get a PhD in Environmental Strategy and Sustainable Systems at the University of Surrey. So, is studying an environmental subject the key to landing a job like Head of Sustainability at a multinational conglomerate such as Nestlé? Not so, says Emma: "We need a whole wealth of different talents and skills. There are lots of ways to get into this space." Listen to the full episode to find out how Emma rose to the top of her profession - including successful stints at Unilever and the WWF - what she loves most a

Could adopting a climatarian diet be the biggest single change each of us could make to reduce global warming? It's a big question, and possibly a big change for many of us, but James Hand, Co-Founder of Giki Zero, thinks it could have the biggest impact. In this episode of the Table Talk podcast, James sets out why and attempts to bust some myths around climatarian diets. He says that the average person in the UK has a carbon footprint of nine tonnes per year, and in order to meet CO2 reduction targets, that needs to come down to two tonnes. Our diet is one of the areas we have a lot of control of, and when you consider that food makes up around 25 per cent of the average person's carbon footprint, it's clear that making a positive change would have a big impact. But how easy and how realistic is it to expect everyone to make such a change? What are the main challenges for the average consumer? And can those challenges really be overcome? When thinking about the carbon footprint of the food

The destruction of tropical rainforests to make way for palm oil plantations is a growing environmental crisis. It's forecast that by 2050, worldwide production of palm oil will triple, leading to the continued large-scale loss of habitat and rising CO2 emissions. So if it is so damaging to the environment, why is it so widely used and isn't the answer simply to ban it? In this episodes of the Table Talk podcast, we look at the reasons why palm oil has gained such a foothold, not just in the food industry but in other industries too, and investigate why banning its use might not be the panacea it's sometimes put forward as. Palm oil is in a huge number of products, with estimates suggesting it is in around 50% of all processed food. It is used as a primary cooking ingredient, an ingredient to increase viscosity, and it's also used in some biofuels. Part of the reason it is so popular, is because it is a very high-yielding crop - it produces five-times more oil per hectare than rapeseed, and

The history of sugar is inextricably linked to the horrors of the slave trade. In this episode of the Table Talk podcast, Stefan Gates is joined by evolutionary biologist and food historian, Neil Buttery, to reflect on that history. Sugarcane originated as a crop in New Guinea around 8,000 BC, but quickly spread through Asia. It played a role in the economy of the Persian Empire and was eventually cultivated by Europeans during the Crusades. This is when the story takes a dark turn, with plantations spreading across the continent, and the first African slaves used in sugar production on Madeira and the Canary Islands. When Europeans moved into the Americas, the sugar trade grew, and so too did the slave trade. Listen to the full episode to hear discussion on how much modern Britain benefits from the sugar and slave trades of the past. Neil also talks about why humans have evolved to crave sugar, and the impact the cultivation of sugarcane has had on the environment. Neil Buttery, Evol

"The food industry is a fantastic place to work. It can be challenging, but it can be so much fun. You will always be learning." So says Rachel Auty, New Product Development Controller at Greencore. Greencore make all sorts of food products that end up being sold in supermarkets, from soups, to sushi, and salads to sauces. Rachel works in the prepared meals sector and in this episode of the Career Conversations series, she reveals all about the process of getting a new product to market - from brief to shelf. It could all have been very different though. Rachel says a chance meeting on a bus when she was a teenager set her on her career path. She says that day "when the stars aligned" is the reason she is so passionate about sharing information with young people at the start of their food careers: "So they don't have to meet a certain person, on a certain bus, on a certain day to find out what they want to do." Rachel went on to study Food Marketing Management at Sheffield Hallam University

Quick Commerce, online services that deliver products to your door in minutes, appear to be booming at the moment. Boosted by a huge shift in consumer habits during the pandemic, new companies have been sprouting up all over the place. In some parts of the UK, it's possible to get groceries delivered to your home in just 10 minutes. But is a model where pickers, drivers and processing staff have to rush orders to customers in the time it takes to make a decent cup of tea financially sustainable? In this episode of the Table Talk podcast, made in partnership with Accenture, we delve into the world of Quick Commerce and look at where the evidence suggests the sector might be heading. Who is the target customer? Which markets are proving most fruitful? And is anyone making a profit? Promotional pricing and super-fast delivery times might attract new customers, but how long can they be sustained? Will the gig economy continue to be the staffing model of choice, or, as in some parts of China, wil

Easter is an important time of year for the food industry, and is one of the pillars of the calendar for any company working in the sector. But the role of food goes way beyond planning stock or staffing restaurants, it has always played a key role in how Easter is celebrated. Easter symbolism is laced with food at almost every turn, from Shrove Tuesday, to Lent, Easter Eggs and the Holy Communion. In this episode of the Table Talk podcast, we explore the food-related traditions that go hand-in-hand with Easter. Why do we eat pancakes on Shrove Tuesday? Why is lamb the meat of choice on Easter Sunday? And when did chocolate Easter Eggs come to prominence? We also learn how the hot cross bun rose in popularity in the UK, was banned, and then returned. And we look further afield at the traditional Easter dishes being served up around the world. Emma Wells, Historian and Archaeologist, University of York Dr Emma J. Wells is an historian and archaeologist of the medieval Church based at t

The history of gin has seen the drink rise and fall in popularity, and rise and fall in social status. Initially developed in the Netherlands as a medicine, it was drunk by soldiers there, giving birth to the phrase "Dutch courage". It quickly became popular in the UK, and a quirk of the tax system meant it was soon a hugely popular, very alcoholic, extremely cheap drink. At one point it would cost more to buy a pint of beer than it would to buy a pint of gin. But that all soon changed and, having once been so abundant that some people received their wages in gin rations, it was eventually taxed so heavily that it was forced underground and a black market for the drink emerged. In this episode of the Table Talk podcast, we look at the turbulent history of gin and gaze into the future to see what might be in store for the, once again, en vogue tipple. Find out what defines a gin, how tonic water ended up being so closely associated with it, and why, to this day, you still see images of cats o

"When I knew I was dyslexic.. and I read about it, everything made sense. Every condition that we have makes us unique and special." Rocio Egio, food illustrator and artist, has an infectious energy and attitude to life. She signs off all her emails "delightfully dyslexic" and tells Elisa Roche in this episode of the Career Conversations series: "All the capacity that I have now is because I have dyslexia. It's not something negative." Rocio's career started out on a very different path. She describes herself as "a super nerd" at school. Although she always wanted to be an artist, she says "everyone was telling me I had to study for a proper career, so I did architecture." Those years were happy ones, and she says, training to be an architect has had an effect on the work she produces today: "It was a different path to arrive at the same place." After a stint as a graphic designer, she moved into food illustration and has won big commissions with the likes of the New York Times and the Washi

The Coronavirus pandemic caused a shock to the grocery retail sector like none we've seen before. But with great challenges, often come great innovations. Technology now plays a bigger role in the average consumer's shopping experience than ever before and the changes we were all forced to make have opened the doors to even more innovation in the future. In this episode of the Table Talk podcast, Stefan Gates is joined by two experts to look at how technology has altered the grocery shopping landscape, and how it could shape its future too. They look at the biggest technological successes in the sector, as well as the biggest failures - the big winners and losers of the past few years. Will QR codes still play a key role a decade from now? How can mobile apps transform the shopping experience? Will automation become the norm? And what could all of the above mean for employment, data protection, and the price of food? Will blockchain develop to become the backbone of the grocery retail sector

Wilfred Emmanuel-Jones, AKA, The Black Farmer, is a force to be reckoned with. A child of the Windrush generation, he left Jamaica and moved to Birmingham where he lived with 10 family members in a two-up two-down. Nobody would have believed then that he would go on to become a wildly successful farmer and entrepreneur – nobody except him, perhaps. Key to his success has been his attitude, “you have to be audacious”, he tells Elisa Roche in this episode of the Career Conversations podcast series. Even as a young boy, growing up in an area he describes as “the pits”, Wilfred Emmanuel-Jones was driven to do better for himself. Roped in to help his dad on his allotment, bought to supplement the family’s income, he soon found his calling: “I absolutely loved being on our allotment as a child because it was an oasis away from the misery I was surrounded by. “At the age of 11, I made myself a promise, that one day I would like to own my own farm.” But before he could achieve his dream, he had a

How much do labels and packaging affect what we taste when we eat food? It's a question that Christopher T Simons, Associate Professor in Sensory Science at The Ohio State University, has given a lot of thought to. In his latest study, he presented people with three plates of identical biscuits, one labelled "customer complaint", one labelled "factory typical", and another labelled "new and improved". "People perceived them totally differently" he tells Stefan Gates in this episode of the Table Talk podcast. But why is that? And how can the food industry use studies like this to make their products more attractive to consumers? Professor Simons says there are important lessons to be learned, and many ways the findings can be applied, not least in new product development and marketing. And if labels and packaging, descriptions and pre-conceived ideas are so important, could they be used to help people switch to a healthier, more sustainable diet? Christopher T Simons, Associate Professor

"I've learned to welcome (people saying) no. Each 'no' brings you a little closer to the next yes." It takes a lot to launch a successful food brand, but Sophie Baron, founder of Mamamade, says she couldn't have done it alone. She says she was lucky to have mentorship from women within the business world, particularly as she admits to being scared it wasn't all going to work out when she first started. In this episode of the Career Conversations podcast series, Sophie Baron reveals all about what she calls her "non-linear" path to launching an organic baby food brand. Things could have been very different for Sophie. She started out studying Russian and French at university in New York, before working as an editorial assistant at Vogue. It was when she had her first child that she found her true calling: "My inspiration was wanting better food than I could find on the shelf." She launched Mamamade from the spare room of her home and the business has gone from success to success. Listen to

How do you go about making a sustainable food system that is net positive when it comes to carbon emissions? How much comes down to changing consumer behaviour versus manufacturing practices? And if you are to change the entire food system, how do you go about getting all stakeholders onboard? None of these are easy questions to answer, but that's where a project in the Netherlands comes in. The Dutch Research Agenda is looking at these issues and trying to come up with solutions to some of the biggest environmental problems the food system faces. Their work in the Netherlands is important, as the country has a long history of trying to tackle sustainability issues, whilst also being known as "the tiny country that feeds the world." It has the highest density of livestock in Europe - more than four times that of the UK or France - with more than 100 million cattle, chickens and pigs. Having a wildly successful agricultural sector comes with it’s own unique set of problems. In this epis

"The early part of my career was in food marketing roles, which I absolutely loved. But I really felt like I wanted to work for myself." And so began a hugely successful career as a vegan food blogger, author and podcast host for Niki Webster. Perhaps just as well known as the woman behind Rebel Recipes, Niki's rise to fame would have been difficult to predict when she was a student. "I did a degree in Sociology and Criminology," she tells Elisa Roche in the latest episode of Career Conversations. Her move into the world of food was something of a happy accident: "I just started applying for all sorts of graduate roles." Niki ended up working at a breakfast cereal manufacturer, then moved into marketing and social media, where she learned many of the skills that would stand her in good stead in the future. In this episode, Niki reveals all when it comes to what goes into writing a cook book, and offers some top tips on how to get the most of your Instagram food photos. Join our Smartphon

In the battle against food waste, increasing the shelf-life of products is one weapon we have at our disposal. The latest figures suggest we still produce around 143kg of waste per person per year in the UK.  But many traditional methods of increasing shelf-life don’t fit with consumer concerns about healthy eating – additives, salt, sugar and fat just aren’t on trend. And those manufacturers keen to have as clean a label as possible aren’t generally shouting from the rooftops about the presence of Nisin or Trisodium Phosphate. Join the Millbo Masterclass: How to deliver product longevity in the clean label way In this episode of the Table Talk podcast, made in partnership with Millbo, we look at one potential solution to the conundrum. Millbo says X-tra Guard can increase shelf-life by around six days and, crucially, it is made entirely from Rowan berries. That means it ticks the box when it comes to having a clean label. Find out how the company found the solution, how they negotiat