The story of perhaps the greatest transformation in the history of food and how it continues today

Eat This Podcast

Sushi

A dish that is today an icon of Indian food dates back only to 1947, using an ingredient that became widespread only in the 1920s

Midnight’s chicken: Indian food evolution

"The cups might break, but the images recycle endlessly."

Italian coffee: a temporary triangle

India gained independence in 1947 with nationalist politicians promising food for all and an end to the rapacious imperial administration. What happened next?

Food in post-independence India

Diet for a Large Planet shows how the world is still living with free trade policies from the 19th century

The original global food system

Jess Fanzo takes a close look at what’s wrong with global food systems and how it might be possible to change them.

Can Fixing Dinner Fix the Planet?

Green Saffron is a new kind of spice merchant, that cares as much about how its spices are grown as their taste.

A very modern spice merchant

Coffee that tastes of light black tea — a good thing — and is able to cope with warmer climates.

Coffea stenophylla tastes terrific

Skill and craft over automation, complexity over simplicity, and diversity over monoculture

The Great Re-Think: What is agriculture for, really?

There’s one group of people that functional foods and superfoods can definitely help: the people who grow them.

What is the value of functional foods?

There may not be a recipe, but there’s always someone sitting behind your shoulder going tsk, tsk, tsk.

Naomi Duguid: Exploring the World through Food

Three billion people couldn’t afford a healthy diet even if they wanted to.

The cost is too damn high

These days, population is barely considered as a factor in food security. That doesn’t mean the problem is solved.

Still ticking

Using land that could be used to feed people to feed animals is a terrible waste, but for today’s modern breeds it is absolutely essential.

The quest to conserve rare breeds

Emojipedia understands: ? is both a fruit and a vegetable

The International Year of Fruits and Vegetables

Using food to explore all manner of topics, from agriculture to zoology. Eat This Podcast tries to go beyond the obvious to see how the food we eat influences and is influenced by history, archaeology, trade, chemistry, economics, geography, evolution, religion — you get the picture. We don’t do recipes, except when we do, or restaurant reviews, ditto. We do offer an eclectic smorgasbord of tasty topics.