Interesting that it's all about UPF today - @lizziewingfield has a post about it today and I've got a post going out this evening. I'm just about to interview Chris VT this afternoon for Cooking the Books so I'll tell him that Substack is a-buzzin'.
It is a complicated issue but it must be addressed. Chris says in the book: "The real source of shame and stigma should be directed toward governments refusing to regulate this stuff…”.
Thanks Mallika for brain dumping from your session and stimulating the thinking.
My session was only 6 months in planning! Hope it went well Gilly. It really must be addressed, but the reality is that government will be slow to move as it will make food more expensive. No one wants to do that in a cost of living crisis.
3 podcast episodes to persuade everyone otherwise coming up. Chris tomorrow and Hugh FW on Cooking the Books, and the investors and business leaders on the Food Foundation Podcast on Friday. Let the fires burn!
Ohh Mallika I’m so glad you made the point about education not being the whole solution. I have two small kids and no matter how much delicious fresh food I make, it can be very challenging to get them to eat it over, say, chicken nuggets and potato waffles. I have made and frozen my own chips and nuggets before but it’s time consuming so isn’t always an option. I would dearly love to see the big supermarkets eradicate some of the more harmful and unnecessary additives in preprepared food, particularly frozen food, and I would pay more for these products.
From what I've heard they are looking into it but I have no idea to what extent and how long it will take to see results. I love breathing a bit of real life into these sessions, so we don't lose sight of the challenges on the ground. Hang in there and keep giving them the good stuff! Our actions matter.
Very timely piece Mallika. Maybe we need a new brand of food activism that names and shames big producers of UPFs... If businesses profiting from this sector aren't going to take the initiative (and if legislature takes forever to happen) then maybe negative publicity will be a better driver for change.
Hi Mike, this is already happening. BiteBack is mobiling youth and activists have become shareholders at Nestle. The challenge is that they are hiding behind affordability as UPFs are cheap to produce and Britain is used to cheap food, and needs it more than ever given the economic climate. Here's hoping...
Interesting that it's all about UPF today - @lizziewingfield has a post about it today and I've got a post going out this evening. I'm just about to interview Chris VT this afternoon for Cooking the Books so I'll tell him that Substack is a-buzzin'.
It is a complicated issue but it must be addressed. Chris says in the book: "The real source of shame and stigma should be directed toward governments refusing to regulate this stuff…”.
Thanks Mallika for brain dumping from your session and stimulating the thinking.
My session was only 6 months in planning! Hope it went well Gilly. It really must be addressed, but the reality is that government will be slow to move as it will make food more expensive. No one wants to do that in a cost of living crisis.
3 podcast episodes to persuade everyone otherwise coming up. Chris tomorrow and Hugh FW on Cooking the Books, and the investors and business leaders on the Food Foundation Podcast on Friday. Let the fires burn!
Chris Van Tulleken episode is out now https://shows.acast.com/cooking-the-books/episodes/chris-van-tulleken-ultra-processed-people
Ohh Mallika I’m so glad you made the point about education not being the whole solution. I have two small kids and no matter how much delicious fresh food I make, it can be very challenging to get them to eat it over, say, chicken nuggets and potato waffles. I have made and frozen my own chips and nuggets before but it’s time consuming so isn’t always an option. I would dearly love to see the big supermarkets eradicate some of the more harmful and unnecessary additives in preprepared food, particularly frozen food, and I would pay more for these products.
From what I've heard they are looking into it but I have no idea to what extent and how long it will take to see results. I love breathing a bit of real life into these sessions, so we don't lose sight of the challenges on the ground. Hang in there and keep giving them the good stuff! Our actions matter.
Very timely piece Mallika. Maybe we need a new brand of food activism that names and shames big producers of UPFs... If businesses profiting from this sector aren't going to take the initiative (and if legislature takes forever to happen) then maybe negative publicity will be a better driver for change.
Hi Mike, this is already happening. BiteBack is mobiling youth and activists have become shareholders at Nestle. The challenge is that they are hiding behind affordability as UPFs are cheap to produce and Britain is used to cheap food, and needs it more than ever given the economic climate. Here's hoping...