History & Culture

For as long as humankind has existed, meals have brought communities together. Discover the origins of your favourite foods and how they are shared by other cultures around the world - and pick up a few tips you can use in your own kitchen!

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Cheddar Reborn: The Revival of an Artisan Cheese Industry
Article Inside Our Food

Cheddar Reborn: The Revival of an Artisan Cheese Industry

Dr Caroline Wood

You might know Cheddar cheese as a mass-produced commodity, useful for slicing into sandwiches or…

Farming Seaweed Around The World | A Visual Essay
Article Earth First

Farming Seaweed Around The World | A Visual Essay

Eloise Adler

In a world where a growing population and a changing climate is putting pressure on both our land…

Food Safety and Fukushima | Rebuilding Trust After a Nuclear Disaster
Article Human Stories

Food Safety and Fukushima | Rebuilding Trust After a Nuclear Disaster

Madhura Rao, Dr Makoto Takahashi

It’s been over a decade since the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear disaster in 2011, but the devastation…

2023 is The International ‘Year of Millets’ | Here’s Why They Matter For Global Food Security
Article Human Stories

2023 is The International ‘Year of Millets’ | Here’s Why They Matter For Global Food Security

Sanket Jain

Indigenous millets are a nutritious and climate-resilient crop. But in India, their production is…

Tempeh | How It’s Made
Article Inside Our Food

Tempeh | How It’s Made

Anne Reshetnyak

You might have seen tempeh on the supermarket shelves alongside tofu, on the menu of a veggie café,…

La Tomatina Festival | A Visual Essay
Article History & Culture

La Tomatina Festival | A Visual Essay

Cait Mack

Each year, on the last Wednesday of August, crowds descend on the sleepy mediaeval town of Buñol in…

Underground Mushroom Farms | A Visual Essay
Article History & Culture

Underground Mushroom Farms | A Visual Essay

Eloise Adler

47 million years ago, when the sea covered the north of France, limestone banks started to form in…

Cocoa, Coffee, and Cocaine: A Bitter-Sweet Future for Farmers in Colombia
Article Human Stories

Cocoa, Coffee, and Cocaine: A Bitter-Sweet Future for Farmers in Colombia

Sunny Chen

Coca, once used in the original Coca-Cola recipe in 1886, has impacted Colombia since the industry…

Regenerative Lessons From Indigenous Food Systems
Article Human Stories

Regenerative Lessons From Indigenous Food Systems

Rachel Bailleau

When European colonisers came to North America, they said they were settling in “unused” and…

Foraging in The Modern World: Rediscovering an Ancient Practice
Article Earth First

Foraging in The Modern World: Rediscovering an Ancient Practice

Andrei Mihail

Have you ever tasted the sweetness of wild strawberries freshly picked from the forest? The…

Crops That Feed The World | Rice
Article Earth First

Crops That Feed The World | Rice

Madhura Rao

Bibimbap, Biryani, Jollof Rice, Nasi Lemak, Paella, Risotto, Sushi – the list of delicious rice…

Crops That Feed The World | Maize
Article History & Culture

Crops That Feed The World | Maize

Madhura Rao

Sin maíz no hay país – without maize, there is no country – is a popular slogan from a Mexican…

Crops That Feed The World | Wheat
Article Earth First

Crops That Feed The World | Wheat

Madhura Rao

In many ways, wheat is a symbol of human evolution. A robust ancient grain that has sustained life…

The Indian Farmers Battling Climate Change With 10,000-year-old Emmer Wheat
Article Human Stories

The Indian Farmers Battling Climate Change With 10,000-year-old Emmer Wheat

Sanket Jain

Across India, farmers have been reporting major losses due to recurring climate disasters. But the…

Farming For Gender Equality | Agroecology in Practice
Article Earth First

Farming For Gender Equality | Agroecology in Practice

Emily Payne

Small-scale farming communities across the world are using agroecology to simultaneously tackle food…

Salmon Hatcheries | Lifeline For Struggling Rivers or an Ecological Burden?
Article Earth First

Salmon Hatcheries | Lifeline For Struggling Rivers or an Ecological Burden?

Jude Isabella

With dwindling wild populations, salmon hatcheries were a supposed solution to revitalise struggling…

How Potatoes Shape Our Past, Present, and Future
Article History & Culture

How Potatoes Shape Our Past, Present, and Future

Annabel Slater

For such simple-seeming tubers, potatoes have been hugely influential in shaping our history. But…

Aquaculture Feed: Is There Enough to go Around?
Article History & Culture

Aquaculture Feed: Is There Enough to go Around?

Madhura Rao

Aquaculture plays a critical role in today’s food system. It provides consumers around the…

Food Forests | Sustainable Agriculture, Nature’s Way
Article The Future

Food Forests | Sustainable Agriculture, Nature’s Way

Lina Dilly

Discover how food forests could future proof our food systems.

Mycophobia and the Lost Knowledge of the Fungi Kingdom
Article History & Culture

Mycophobia and the Lost Knowledge of the Fungi Kingdom

Jonáš Skutka

When it comes to wild mushrooms, Europe shows an interesting split in the way different nations and…

Managing Our Oceans: A Small-Scale Approach
Article History & Culture

Managing Our Oceans: A Small-Scale Approach

Jessica Tengvall

In order to sustainably manage many of our large-scale fisheries, we need data, scientists to…

10 Organisations Fighting for Food Security
Article History & Culture

10 Organisations Fighting for Food Security

Madhura Rao

Whether ensuring citizens' right to safe food or advocating for those growing and processing our…

3 Resilient Crops For Changing Climates
Article Earth First

3 Resilient Crops For Changing Climates

Dr Caroline Wood

As the climate continues to destabilise, food security is put under increasing pressure. These three…

What is Ghee?
Article Inside Our Food

What is Ghee?

Madhura Rao

As South Asian recipes gain popularity among food enthusiasts beyond the subcontinent,…

Ancient Farming Systems | Ask the Expert
Article History & Culture

Ancient Farming Systems | Ask the Expert

Madhura Rao, Dr Shyama Vermeersch

Did ancient civilisations farm differently from us? Did they struggle with issues similar to those…

7 Alternative Ways To Grow Food and Community
Article The Future

7 Alternative Ways To Grow Food and Community

Aran Shaunak

Over the course of generations, farms have become bigger, more industrialised and more efficient.…

Amaranth: A staple of the past and a crop for the future
Article Earth First

Amaranth: A staple of the past and a crop for the future

Claudia Lee

From being offered to the Gods by ancient civilisations to being touted as a future crop that can…

The Rise of Eating Alone
Article Inside Our Food

The Rise of Eating Alone

Silvia Lazzaris

For millennia, humans have shared meals together with their communities. The social aspect of eating…

Cheap Seafood | The Social Cost of Production
Article The Future

Cheap Seafood | The Social Cost of Production

Madhura Rao

Many workers employed onboard offshore fishing vessels have been subjected to unsafe working…

Pollinating Orchards By Hand | Lessons From Sichuan, China
Article History & Culture

Pollinating Orchards By Hand | Lessons From Sichuan, China

Molly Melvin

Bees and other pollinators play an invaluable role on our planet – from being an integral part…

Sustainable Fishing Levels & Quotas | How It Works
Article The Future

Sustainable Fishing Levels & Quotas | How It Works

Jessica Tengvall

For decades, growing consumer demand and a lack of clear fisheries restrictions contributed to the…

The Ethics of Foie Gras
Article Inside Our Food

The Ethics of Foie Gras

Claudia Lee

A symbol of "haute cuisine", the story of foie gras began in Ancient Egypt. Produced by gavaging…

5 Lessons Agriculture Can Learn From Ecology
Article The Future

5 Lessons Agriculture Can Learn From Ecology

Emiliano Guijosa Guadarrama

The agricultural systems that provide us with our food today may seem different from…

Are Microwaves Safe? | Debunking Molecular Myths
Article Inside Our Food

Are Microwaves Safe? | Debunking Molecular Myths

Luke Cridland

Microwave ovens are a convenience dream, making meals in minutes and keeping washing up to a…

What Are Soba Noodles?
Article Inside Our Food

What Are Soba Noodles?

Samanta Oon

There’s lots to love about soba noodles. They’re light but hearty, flavourful yet mild,…

Should We Bring Back The Buffet?
Article Earth First

Should We Bring Back The Buffet?

Dr Caroline Wood

Lavish, all-you-can-eat spreads are often a key feature of parties, weddings, hotel stays and…

Ocean Transportation: What It Takes To Ship Our Food
Article Human Stories

Ocean Transportation: What It Takes To Ship Our Food

Jane Alice Liu

Ocean transportation underpins the majority of global trade, with around 80 per cent of our goods…

Expanding The Gaze Of Modern Fisheries Management
Article Human Stories

Expanding The Gaze Of Modern Fisheries Management

Oliver Fredriksson, Dr Andrea Reid

Dr Andrea Reid is a citizen of the Nisgaꞌa Nation, an Assistant Professor of Indigenous…

The Environmental Impacts of Greenhouse Agriculture in Almería, Spain
Article History & Culture

The Environmental Impacts of Greenhouse Agriculture in Almería, Spain

Inés Oort Alonso

If you look at a satellite image of Spain, you will observe a white dot in the South East of the…

Why Trust In Our Food System Matters
Article The Future

Why Trust In Our Food System Matters

Marie Lödige

Trust is very personal, and we all define it a little bit differently. Most often, we associate…

5 Tips to Reduce Household Food Waste
Article Earth First

5 Tips to Reduce Household Food Waste

Madhura Rao

A third of the food grown on this planet ends up being lost or thrown away. A big chunk of this…

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