The Food Chain

People have been eating out in restaurants and bars for hundreds of years, and some of those early establishments are still open today.

This week Ruth Alexander meets the people running some of the world’s oldest restaurants. When so many close within the first 12 months of opening, what’s the secret to centuries-old success?

Antonio Gonzales Gomez runs Botin, in the Spanish capital Madrid. The restaurant is judged as the oldest by the Guinness World Records, and he tells us how he and his family have kept it going for so long.

Ruth heads to the east of England to Nottingham, where the battle to claim the title of 'world's oldest pub' is fierce. Buildings archaeologist Dr James Wright explains what evidence he's found to declare the winner.

We hear how a 200-year-old tavern in Missouri, in the United States, has been battling to stay open, and the man who runs the "oldest sausage restaurant in the world" tells us why being located of an historic German town boosts business.

Why do we enjoy foods that crunch?

Listener Sheila Harris contacted The Food Chain with that question and asked us to find out if the food texture has any benefits.

Ruth Alexander speaks to Danielle Reed, Chief Science Officer at the Monell Chemical Senses Center in Philadelphia, US, who says that crunchy foods signal freshness and help our brains decide if a food is safe to eat.

Paediatric dentist Ashley Lerman in New York, US says crunchy fruit and vegetables can act as a natural tooth cleaner.

Anthropologist Professor Noreen von Cramon-Taubadel at the University at Buffalo in New York, US says that the texture of our diets can impact the shape of our faces. Her work has studied how jaw shape has changed as humans switched from hunter gatherer to farming diets.

Ciarán Forde, Professor of Sensory Science and Eating Behaviour at Wageningen University in the Netherlands explains how crunchy and other hard textures could help us to eat more slowly and consume fewer calories.

And could crunch make foods more palatable? Chef Dulsie Fadzai Mudekwa in Zimbabwe says the texture is key to convincing people to try edible insects.

If you have a question for The Food Chain email thefoodchain@bbc.co.uk

Produced by Beatrice Pickup.

(Image: a woman biting a stick of celery. Credit: Getty Images/BBC)

Around 100 countries have official dietary guidelines, and more are on their way. But who is following them?

Ruth Alexander asks how realistic healthy-eating advice is as she explores how official recommendations are developed, what they’re trying to achieve, and the obstacles standing in our way.

We hear from Fatima Hachem, Senior Nutrition Officer at the United Nation’s Food and Agriculture Organisation, about how her team offers support to countries designing dietary guidelines.

Chiza Kunwenda, senior lecturer in the Department of Food Science and Nutrition at the University of Zambia, tells us how he and a team of others drew up the latest dietary guidelines for Zambia and other countries in Africa.

In Argentina, as well as advice, the government has issued black octagonal warning labels on foods high in salt sugar, saturated fats and calories. Are people taking notice?

And can people around the world afford to eat according to guidelines? Dr Anna Herforth co-directed the Food prices for Nutrition project at Tufts University in the United States, tells us what she found. We also hear from shoppers at a community food outlet in the North West of England, about how cost is barrier to healthy eating.

(Image: a plate of food showing suggested dietary guidelines. Credit: Getty Images/BBC)

If you’d like to contact the programme, email thefoodchain@bbc.co.uk.

Producers: Hannah Bewley and Izzy Greenfield.

Rice is the main staple for over half the world’s population.

The crop has problems though – it is vulnerable to climate change, whether that’s drought or flooding. It’s also a crop that contributes to climate change, as it uses more water than other grain crops and is frequently grown in flooded conditions. Rice production is also a big source of methane emissions.

In this programme Ruth Alexander hears about the possible solutions to these problems. Dr Yvonne Pinto, Director General of the International Rice Research Institute in the Philippines talks about their work developing new varieties of rice, and new more sustainable farming techniques.

One rice company trialling these techniques is Tilda in the UK. General Manager Jean-Philippe Laborde explains what difference it’s made to water and fertiliser use as well as methane emissions.

Given the problems with rice, should we just eat less of it?

Jakob Klein, anthropologist at SOAS University of London explains the Chinese government’s attempts to convince people to eat more potato as a staple food.

And we talk about the cultural importance of rice with listeners in the Philippines and Bangladesh.

If you’d like to contact the programme email thefoodchain@bbc.co.uk

Presented by Ruth Alexander.

Produced by Beatrice Pickup.

(Image: a steaming bowl of rice with chopsticks above it holding a mouthful of white rice grains. Credit: Getty Images/BBC)

When there are so many recipes available for free online, why does anyone still buy cookbooks?

In this programme we look into the business of selling cookbooks, what future the format may have and hear about the treasured tomes you turn to time and time again.

Ruth Alexander visits Books for Cooks, a specialist cookbook shop in London, to chat to Eric Treuille who cooks lunch for his customers from a different cookbook each day.

She speaks to cookbook writers Mogau Seshoene in South Africa, author of ‘The Lazy Makoti’ books, and Joanne Molinaro in the US, author of ‘The Korean Vegan’.

Doris Cooper tells Ruth what a publisher is looking for in a cookbook. She tells Ruth about her big hits and misses as editor-in-chief of Simon Element, a division of Simon and Schuster in New York.

And listeners in Italy, Malta and the US tell us about their favourite cookbooks.

If you would like to contact the programme email thefoodchain@bbc.co.uk.

Presented by Ruth Alexander.

Produced by Beatrice Pickup.

(Image: Ruth Alexander with her grandmother’s cookbook, which still holds her handwritten pastry recipe. Credit: BBC)