Food Matters Live Podcast

Turkey, roast potatoes, Christmas pudding, Brussels sprouts - Christmas dinner hasn't always been this way.And there is certainly no reason to think it will stay that way in the future.In this episode of the Table Talk podcast, Stefan Gates delves into the history of the Christmas dinner with food historian Seren Charrington-Hollins.Seren reveals why Victorian Christmas traditions have endured the longest, how plant-based foods have always played a role in the main festive meal, and she re-visits the once ubiquitous 'Christmas Kissing Ball'.And she tries to answer a key question; are current Christmas dinner traditions sustainable in the long-term? Seren Charrington-HollinsAs a food historian, Seren has been bringing food history to life since 2007. She has written countless articles on food and domestic history, has given countless local and national radio interviews, as well as having appeared in a variety of TV programmes and productions. Already the published author of "A Dark History of Tea", she is currently working on her new book 'A Century of Eating: How our tastes have changed", which focuses on what has happened to the way we shop and eat in the past century. 

Professor David Nutt, on the science behind hangovers and how new trends in the drinks market could help eradicate them for good.Alcohol is very much on the agenda as we approach the end of the year and look forward to a new one.Typically, in December we drink too much and in January, many of us think about cutting back.In this episode of the Table Talk podcast, Stefan Gates is joined by a very special guest who can offer some real insights into our relationship with alcohol, and specifically hangovers.Professor David Nutt is a former UK Government adviser and is currently employed at Imperial College London.He reveals the cost to the economy of people being hungover, why he thinks hangovers should be considered a form of illness, and how he believes synthetic alternatives to alcohol could eradicate some of its least desirable effects. David Nutt, DM, FRCP, FRCPsych, FBPhS FMedSci DLaws David Nutt is currently the Edmund J Safra Professor of Neuropsychopharmacology, Head of the Centre for Neuropsychopharmacology, and Director of the Centre for Psychedelic Research in the Division of Brain Science at Imperial College London. He is also visiting professor at the Open University in the UK and Maastricht University in the Netherlands.Professor Nutt was the UK Government’s drug adviser in the late 2000s. He was removed from the position in 2009 for claiming that alcohol is more dangerous than ecstasy or LSD. The following year, he published a study that showed that alcohol is more harmful to society than heroin or crack cocaine.Professor Nutt has held a number of significant scientific leadership positions including Presidencies of the European Brain Council, the British Neuroscience Association, the British Association of Psychopharmacology and the European College of Neuropsychopharmacology as well as Chair of the UK Advisory Council on the Misuse of Drugs. He has published over 500 original research papers, a similar number of reviews and books chapters, eight government reports on drugs and 35 books, including one for the general public; ‘Drugs Without the Hot Air’, which won the Transmission book prize in 2014 for Communication of Ideas. The second edition of this has just been released as has his autobiography ‘Nutt Uncut’. 

If you are kicking yourself for taking an arts degree when really you want to be working in the green economy - this podcast is for you.As part of the Table Talk podcast's Green Jobs series, Stefan Gates meets India Langley, Communications Manager for the innovative indoor farming company LettUs Grow.She reveals the secret to switching from the arts to science, the surprising opportunities that have arisen as a result of her own journey, and why she thinks not having a scientific background has helped her to be better at her job.India Langley, Communications Manager, LettUs GrowIndia Langley is a Sustainability Communicator who specialises in food and farming.  India heads up the communications and marketing team at LettUs Grow, an innovative indoor farming company that provides technology for vertical farms and greenhouses that take account of plants, people and the planet. Their combination of farm management software and aeroponic technology maximises growth rates while minimising environmental impacts to help make sustainable farming a sustainable business.

Most of us know that experiencing flavour doesn’t just involve our tastebuds, but what other factors are influencing us when we eat and why is it so important?In this episode of the Table Talk podcast, Stefan Gates is joined by Betina Piqueras Fiszman, Associate Professor at Wageningen University. They discuss the history of taste and flavour, and the important role they have played in human evolution.From bitterness helping us avoid poisons, to making foods more palatable for hospital patients, taste and flavour have played, and continue to play, a key role in keeping us alive.But what tricks can be used to enhance flavour? What role do emotions play in the eating experience? And what can be done for people who have lost their sense of taste as a result of Covid?Oh, and we find out if Stefan is a "supertaster". Betina Piqueras Fiszman, Associate Professor, Wageningen UniversityBetina's research focuses on the exploration of new ways to understand consumer food preferences and motivations. She investigates these processes by looking into relationships between the sensory characteristics of the product, consumer traits, cognitive and contextual factors, and their combined effect on perception, behaviour, and memorability.She has published more than 70 scientific peer-reviewed papers and book chapters. She actively contributes to various international academic symposiums, courses, and other public events, lectures and podcasts. Betina is co-author of the book “The Perfect Meal” (2015 Prose Award) and co-edited the book “Multisensory Flavor Perception”. She currently sits on the editorial boards of the scientific journals Food Quality and Preference and Appetite.

Carlsberg is one of the biggest beer companies in the world, so working as its Sustainability Manager can mean making small changes that have a big impact.For the last three years, Pete Statham has been doing just that. In this episode of Table Talk, he tells Stefan Gates about how a switch to more sustainable packaging was a commercial success for the firm, and how it worked with competitors to develop the lowest carbon beer bottle in the world.He reveals that companies are now coming under pressure to be more sustainable, not just from customers, but also from investors. He talks about people in roles like his being able to balance activism with a business brain. And he sets out why he thinks collaboration is the key to tackling climate change.  Pete Statham, Sustainability Manager, Carlsberg Marston’s Brewing Company & Carlsberg GroupPete has 10 years’ experience working in corporate sustainability, supporting some of the world’s biggest brands to become more sustainable and transparent.Building on an MSc in Sustainable Development from the University of Exeter, Pete started his career in consultancy, advising brands across a range of industries including FMCG, home furnishings, pharmaceuticals, banking and telecoms, to set ambitious sustainability targets and communicate transparently on their performance.In 2019 he joined Carlsberg to create a new role leading the integration of the Together Towards ZERO sustainability plan across the UK business, while also being responsible for sustainability communications and reporting for the global organisation.In 2020, Pete was named in Edie’s 30 under 30 Sustainability Leaders, and accepted as a Fellow of the Institute of Corporate Responsibility & Sustainability.

When the UK Government published its Obesity Strategy in 2020, many critics argued it didn't go far enough. Now, an alliance of organisations, ranging from doctors to dentists and charities to campaign groups, have come together to set out their vision for change.In this episode of the Table Talk Podcast, Caroline Cerny, Alliance Lead at the Obesity Health Alliance, joins Stefan Gates to set out why she believes their strategy could change the course of the UK's obesity epidemic.She talks about the impact of lockdown on our weight, why we need to move away from obesessing about obesity targets, and why she would like to see the end of cake sales at schools.Caroline CernyCaroline Cerny is Alliance Lead at the Obesity Health Alliance, a coalition of over 40 health charities, medical royal colleges and campaign groups. She coordinates policy development, public affairs and communications across the membership, representing their views to policy makers and the media. Prior to this role, Caroline worked at Cancer Research UK for eight years developing public health campaigns on prevention and early diagnosis. She spent six months seconded into the Department of Health’s policy communication team working on childhood obesity and public health issues.

Ever wondered how Waitrose creates its compelling food images and unique photography style? Or how Tesco’s food photos perfectly reflect their brand? Well wonder no more as Stefan is joined by award-winning food photographer to the stars, Georgia Glynn Smith.  Georgia has worked with some of the nation’s most famous and much-loved cooks from Nigella to Nigel, along with many well-known food and drink brands and retailers.   Georgia shares her passion for ‘the art of noticing’ and spills the secrets behind great food photography, as she shares hints and tips on what it takes to create the perfect photo to immortalise your product.  From understanding your brand, your voice and your audience, she takes listeners on a journey to explore how all these elements should influence the aesthetic and reflect your brand values to create the perfect picture.

Dorothy Shaver is Global Marketing Sustainability Lead at Unilever – but how did a self-confessed “hippie at heart” end up working for one of the world’s biggest companies? And how does she go about getting it to think and act in a more sustainable way?As part of our Green Jobs series, Dorothy joins Stefan Gates to talk about her journey. She reveals how she helped Unilever play a proactive role in creating a more sustainable food supply chain – through its Future 50 Foods initiative. She also offers her top advice for making it in the industry – and why she thinks we need to stop talking about sustainability and start talking about restoration and regeneration.About our panelDorothy Shaver, Global Marketing Sustainability Lead, UnileverDorothy is a Registered Dietitian working in food sustainability with unique experience in, and passion for, driving behaviour change for positive health and environmental outcomes. Over the past fifteen years she has worked across media, retail, health care, and the fitness industry, championing food choices to enable personal and planetary health. Dorothy has helped to spearhead a lot of Unilever’s work on regenerative agriculture projects, including the Future 50 Foods initiative. The joint campaign between WWF and Unilever-owned Knorr, launched in 2019. It lists 50 plant-based foods which purport to have a lower impact on the environment than animal products and most other plants. The idea is to encourage consumers to make more sustainable choices by telling them what they should eat, rather than what they shouldn’t.Dorothy is a guest blogger, podcast speaker, expert contributor and food writer spreading her positive passion and drive to get the masses to fall in love with food that is good for people and the planet. She currently lives in a canal house in Amsterdam, the Netherlands.

Trying to get kids to eat their 5 a day can be a losing battle, but a battle that one man is brave to enough to take on. Dan Power, Chief Executive of Veg Power, and mastermind behind the Eat Them to Defeat Them campaign, joins Stefan Gates to talk about how a campaign to overpower veg has helped to increase vegetable sales by 500 million children’s portions. Dan shares his passion and ambition to transform every family’s dinner table into a place of joy, discussing the importance of looking at life through the lens of a child to help children change their bias towards fruit and veg, and  his new seasonal veg campaign which will help a different generation of parents bring up their kids in a more sustainable and healthy way.

This episode delves further into our exploration of food science and nutrition and continues to explore just how food affects our bodies.  Protein is often see as the magic ingredient in our diets, the key to unlocking our fitness and strength – but are these spurious health claims or does protein provide genuine health benefits? Richard MacKenzie, Director for Sport & Exercise Science Research Group, Roehampton University joins Stefan to explore what protein is, why we really need it in our diet and how much we should be consuming.  From the role of protein shakes to the benefits to bicep muscles, listen to some fascinating facts and advance your understanding of this complex and often misunderstood area of nutrition science.