Right2Food

In this major new podcast series as part of The Food Foundation, Veg Power and Beans in How's three-year mission to get the UK eating more beans, chef and writer Melissa Hemsley shows us how these little powerhouses of goodness are so good for our health, good for the planet and such good news for stretched family budgets.In this first episode, Ian Theasby, one half of the super-influencer recipe developer and food writing team, BOSH! tells us how and why supermarkets can change the conversation about beans; Dr Jo Lunn, head nutritionist at Waitrose takes us behind the scene to show us what's happening in the aisles of power; and Food Foundation ambassador Jani Clarke and her Nan and Grandad try out BOSH!'s Ultimate Chilli recipe - and it more than lives up to the hype.You can find the recipe for BOSH!'s Ultimate Chilli here along with all the recipes for the podcast series. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Welcome to Bang in Some Beans, the six-part mini series from The Food Foundation who, with Veg Power, have partnered up with Beans is How on a three-year mission to get the UK eating more beans.Presented by chef Melissa Hemsley, it's part of a major new project to challenge the way we think about beans.The series is a deep dive into the stories behind beans. We need to eat more beans; beans, pulses and lentils are little powerhouses of goodness. They're good for our health, good for the planet and good news for stretched family budgets.Over six episodes, we find out why there's so much innovation in beans, why athletes are all over them and how they can even help our mental and hormonal health.We see beans as a serious, surprising cultural topic, prodding conversations about the bean that's as much about taste and cost as it is about public health, planetary health, British food culture and class and identity.We want to show that beans are more than a lifestyle choice — they're a system solution. They provide accessible affordable protein in a cost-of-living crisis, they're a low-carbon food in a climate emergency and could fix the fibre deficit in UK diets.Join us every Tuesday as we bang in some beans... Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Katherine Jenner, Executive Director of the Obesity Health Alliance tells us about the new nutrient profile model that has finally been published by the government, and the very real consequences of how food and drink will be advertised and promoted, especially to children.Click here to sign up for The Food Foundation newsletter. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Leticija Petrovic, the local food policy lead at the Food Foundation leads a panel discussion about school food, what works to improve school food menus and children's nutrition, and what we can learn from what is already happening on the ground.The discussion is inspired by a new research project led by the University of Birmingham, and the panel includes: Dr Katie Edwards, research fellow in Psychology at the University of Birmingham; Sarah Newton, who leads the food system team in Public Health Division at Birmingham City Council as well as the Birmingham Food System strategy, and is a driving force behind Birmingham Food Revolution; and Sian Kidd, Food Security Engagement Officer at Monmouthshire County Council. Sian is also the founder and director of Secret Soup Society, a social enterprise working to reduce food waste and provide healthy, nutritious food for the community.Click here for more information on the University of Birmingham research, here for Birmingham's Food System strategy, and here for Chwedlau Bwyd, the creative food education programme that was delivered for Year 3 pupils in primary schools across Monmouthshire.Click here for the Food Foundation newsletter. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Good gut vibes only. Fibre February is the perfect time to Bang in Some Beans!Chloe MacKean, Food Business Transformation Manager at The Food Foundation tells us about the campaign to double UK bean consumption, and how fibre is so essential for our health.Check out the Bang in Some Beans Instagram for delicious beany recipes, and keep an ear out for our Bang in Some Beans podcast series coming very soon! Don't miss out on our latest updates - make sure you're signed up for The Food Foundation's newsletter. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

As food assistance goes digital, vulnerable people risk being shut out. Iris Lim, postdoctoral researcher from SOAS University of London tells us about her research into the barriers people face in accessing support and the overlaps between digital poverty and food poverty.Join us on 12 February to dive deeper at an event with the SOAS research team - you can attend either in person or online. Register for free here and read the SOAS research in full hereTo catch the latest updates from The Food Foundation, sign up for our newsletter here. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Hannah Brinsden, Head of Policy and Advocacy at the Food Foundation tells us about our latest film project which gives a vision of great school food for all children across the country.The Lunch They Deserve is a film by The Tin Bear Project and presented by Emma Thompson and the Food Foundation's Young Ambassadors, gives us a vision of school food that is nourishing and tasty, where our school food is a source of national pride, and of a country where kids are fuelled and ready to learn because of the food they have eaten. Click to sign up for the Food Foundation newsletter. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Andrew Stark, Senior Researcher and Policy Manager at Eating Better, discusses the work of 160 organisations advocating for UK government improvements in the food system. The NGO , itself an alliance of over 70 organisations, has published 17 recommendations for a coherent food policy, emphasising a joined-up healthy food and sustainable farming plan, nature-friendly farming, and affordable, culturally appropriate diets.Click here for more information on Eating Better and sign up to our newsletter to keep up to date with the latest food systems analysis. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Katherine Jenner, Executive Director of the Obesity Health Alliance, gives us her view on the new junk food advertising restrictions.Read our blog for more in-depth analysis here. Click here for more information from the Obesity Health Alliance on the junk food advert ban, and sign up to our newsletter to keep up to date with the latest food systems analysis. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Do family meals mean children eat healthier food? How often are families sitting down together to eat?Dan Parker, Chief Executive of Veg Power, tells us about the latest research understanding what family mealtimes look like in this New Year pod bite. The insights are based on a survey by its Families and Food Task Force, which includes parents, retailers, government, chefs, nutritionists, psychologists, behavioural scientists and the world of advertising and media.Click here for more information on the survey, learn about our Bang in Some Beans campaign with Veg Power here and sign up to our newsletter to keep up to date with our latest food systems analysis. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Sarah Bentley, founder of plant-based community cookery school and charity, Made in Hackney tells us how a small community initiative became the catalyst for a global plant based food justice movement.Read our latest food insecurity report here and sign up to our newsletter to keep up to date with updates about the food system. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Alicia Weston, CEO of Bags of Taste explains why rising prices and food inflation can make a traditional Christmas unaffordable and inaccessible for too many people in the UK.Read our latest food insecurity report here and sign up to our newsletter to keep up to date with updates about the food system. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Hannah Brinsden, Head of Policy and Advocacy at the Food Foundation tells us about the new child poverty strategy published at the end of last week, with reflections from the policy team.Read our latest blog for more in-depth analysis here and keep up to date with our latest news and events by signing up to our newsletter. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Rebecca Tobi, Head of Food Business Transformation at the Food Foundation tell us about our new State of the Nation's Food Industry report for 2025 which we launched this week. Click here to read the report, and here to watch a a panel of leading food businesses and investors analysing the findings. Sign up to our newsletter for all our latest news and updates here. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Hannah Brinsden, Head of Policy and Advocacy at the Food Foundation has been digesting the autumn budget through the lens of diet and health inequalities, and gives us a quick whistle stop tour of some of the key announcements relevant to the work of the Food Foundation.Click here for the Food Foundation Manifesto, read our Budget blog here and here to sign up for the newsletter. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This week, Tilda Ferree, Senior Policy and Advocacy Officer at the Food Foundation gives us an update about the Healthy Start campaign and why the Food Foundation is pushing for this government to strengthen the scheme as part of the child poverty strategy.Click here for the Food Foundation Manifesto and here to sign up for the newsletter. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In this week's Pod Bite, Anna Taylor, Executive Director of the Food Foundation tells us about the launch of the Government's School Breakfast Programme from its new Office for the Impact Economy, a single front door for impact investors, philanthropy and purpose driven businesses to partner with government and collectively grow social impact across the UK. Click here for the Food Foundation Manifesto and here to sign up for the newsletter. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Chloe McKean, Food Business Transformation Manager of The Food Foundation, tells us about a brand new campaign with Veg Power: Bang in Some Beans, which aims to double the consumption of beans in the UK by 2028.Click here to sign up for The Food Foundation newsletter and here for more information on the Bang in Some Beans campaign. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Kicking off our Early Years series on the Podcast, we have a main episode, diving right into the heart of nutrition for the youngest children with a focus on Early Years settings.Hannah Brinsden, Head of Policy and Advocacy at The Food Foundation is joined by a panel of experts for a deep dive into early years nutrition: Neil Leitch, CEO of the Early Years Alliance, and also a Food Foundation trustee, Sarah Ambrose, Area Manager and Curriculum Lead for Safari Child Care, Dayna Brackley, Partner at Bremner and Co, and Charlotte Stirling-Reed, registered nutritionist.Early years nutrition is essential to life long-health and wellbeing, giving children the best start in life. Over a million children are attending some form of formal childcare setting, so what and how they are fed in those settings is really important. Read our latest report on early years nutrition policy here.Please sign up for our newsletter to hear the latest updates from The Food Foundation. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Shona Goudie, Policy and Advocacy Manager at the Food Foundation tells us about our new report, Roadmap to Reducing Food Insecurity which investigates the impact of food insecurity over the past few years and what we can learn from it.The report aims to understand the scale of the problem, the extent to which people are struggling, and identify who is at most at risk so the government and local authorities can most effectively target support.Click here to read the report, and here to sign up to our newsletter. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Lydia Collas, Head of Natural Environment at Green Alliance tells us about their report published this month which explores the consequences of eating more plant-based food for food security, for economic growth and for our health. Click here for the full report, here to learn how climate change is affecting food prices and here to sign up to our newsletter. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Anna Taylor, Executive Director at The Food Foundation analyses the latest EAT-Lancet Commission report which warns that food systems are breaching planetary limits.The 2025 Report on Healthy, Sustainable, and Just Food Systems presents the most comprehensive to date.Click here to find out how Climateflation is affecting food prices and here to sign up to our newsletter for update and analysis of food system developments. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Joss McDonald, Public Affairs Lead at the Food Foundation reports back from the Labour Party Annual Conference in Liverpool, and finds a party not blowing its own trumpet on its food policy wins.Click here for the Food Foundation Manifesto and here to sign up for the newsletter. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Barbara Crowther, Children's Food Campaign Manager at Sustain, the Alliance for Better Food and Farming, tells us about how the expansion of healthy school meals to all children could work better, not just for children's health, but also for local, sustainable and British farming.Click here for more information on Sustain's Follow the Carrot campaign, and here to sign up for the Food Foundation newsletter. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Hannah Brinsden, Head of Policy and Advocacy at the Food Foundation is joined by Food Foundation Ambassador and mother of two young children from Hartlepool, Barbara Achingale, Vic Harper, CEO of The Bread and Butter Thing, and Amanda Bailey, Director of the North East Child Poverty Commission to talk about diet and health inequalities across England.With the publication this week of a new dashboard from The Food Foundation which estimates the prevalence of diet-related disease by constituency, drawing on local authority data, the panel explores the factors in the North East which make strong links to deprivation. Read The Food Foundation's latest news here and sign up for our newsletter here. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Rebecca Tobi, Head of Food Business Transformation at the Food Foundation tells us about a major new programme of work The Food Foundation is kicking off across the UK this year to better support everyone in the UK to eat more beans. Read The Food Foundation's latest news here and sign up for our newsletter here. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Dan Parker, Chief Executive of Veg Power, tells us about the Veg Power Summit happening on 18th September, which will brings together 100 food sector leaders with a shared purpose to improve children's dietary health.Click here for more information on Veg Power, here to read the latest news from The Food Foundation and here to sign up for The Food Foundation newsletter. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Garance Boullenger, Lead at the Healthy Markets Initiative at Share Action, a UK based NGO, campaigning for a fairer, healthier financial system tells us about a powerful move from a group of investors to urge the UK Government to introduce ambitious mandatory health reporting for the food industry.Click here to read the Investor Letter from Share Action, here for the Food Foundation Manifesto and here to sign up for the newsletter. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

As the Government publishes its monthly food inflation statistics, Anna Taylor, the Executive Director of the Food Foundation tells us what's that means for the weekly supermarket shop.Click here for more information on the Food Prices Tracker.Click here for the Food Foundation Manifesto and here to sign up for the newsletter. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Sarah Buszard, the Responsible Investor Lead at the Food Foundation tells us about our latest briefing that discusses the critical relationship between dietary patterns and the environmental impacts of food production on nature and biodiversity loss and the need for systemic change towards more sustainable food systems.Click here for the Food Foundation Manifesto and here to sign up for the newsletter.--- Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Noah Cooke, PhD student at MRC Epidemiology Unit at Cambridge University, tells us about a pilot project exploring the impact of recipe-boxes on dietary quality and food agency in households with school-aged children. Click here for the Food Foundation Manifesto and here to sign up for the newsletter. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In this 151st episode of The Food Foundation Podcast, Anna Taylor, Chief Executive at the Food Foundation celebrates its first 10 years with some of the people who have shared its journey.Laura Sandys OBE, chair and founder of the Food Foundation, Dev Sharma, 20-year-old food activist and young food ambassador at the Food Foundation, Henry Dimbleby MBE and Baroness Rosie Boycott, member of The House of Lords, and the Food Foundation board look back at some of the triumphs and challenges of calling on policy makers to recognize the central importance of the food system in shaping the nation's health and wealth. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Anna Taylor, Executive Director of the Food Foundation talks through the news that the Government has just published a policy paper setting out its ambition for its new food strategy. Anna, who also sits on the Government's Food Strategy Advisory Board, explains the overall ambition of the strategy.Click here for the Food Foundation Manifesto and here to sign up for the newsletter. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Danielle Glavin, Head of Communications at Chefs in Schools tells us about its report into the school food standards and what parents want for their children. In its latest poll with Survation of 1000 parents across all regions and income brackets, clear themes have emerged about the demand for fresh food in school meals.Click here for the full report, the Food Foundation Manifesto and to sign up for the newsletter. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Dr Hannah Brinsden, Head of Policy and Advocacy at the Food Foundation, reflects on the much-anticipated 10-year NHS plan and recent announcements about mandatory reporting and the Healthy Start scheme. Click here for the Food Foundation Manifesto and here to sign up for the newsletter. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Jo Rowling, Head of Campaigns at the Food Foundation introduces Sheila Dillon's report from Groundswell 2025, the regenerative agriculture festival ahead of The Food Foundation panel discussion on beans, legumes, peas and pulses.Click here for the Food Foundation Manifesto and here to sign up for the newsletter. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This week, young Food Ambassador Dev Sharma hosts a very special panel discussion to celebrate the Government's announcement that free school meal eligibility will be expanded to all children in households on Universal Credit, lifting 100,000 children out of poverty, and giving access to a hot, healthy school lunch to around 500,000 more pupils.Dev is joined on the panel Rushda, a 16-year-old Food Ambassador from Halifax, Dr Sam Rushworth, the MP for Bishop Auckland, and Reema Reid, Headteacher of Holydale Primary School in London.Click here for the Food Foundation Manifesto, here for the Broken Plate report, and here to sign up for the newsletter. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In this week's Pod Bites, Shona Goudie, Policy and Advocacy Manager at the Food Foundation gives a rundown on what we need to know about last week's spending review when it comes to food.Click here for the Food Foundation Manifesto and here to sign up for the newsletter. And watch this space for more clarity and updates from The Food Foundation. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Fran Bernhardt, the Commercial Determinants Coordinator of Sustain the Alliance for Better Food and Farming, explains the impact of the latest Government delay in TV and online advertising restrictions.Click here for the Food Foundation Manifesto and here to sign up for the newsletter. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Anna Taylor, Executive Director of The Food Foundation on the thrilling news this week from Government on the expansion of free school meals. From September 2026, all children in England who are in households eligible for Universal Credit, will become eligible for free school meals. Anna explains what that means to around half a million additional children from early years settings right through to sixth form, and to the health and wealth of the nation.Click here for the Food Foundation Manifesto and here to sign up for the newsletter. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Rebecca Tobi, Senior Business and Investor Engagement Manager at the Food Foundation hosts a panel discussion to discuss meat consumption in the UK to coincide with the launch of a new Food Foundation briefing Meat Facts, published this week,which really delves into who in the UK is eating what meat, what type of meat are we all eating, and where are we eating it.The panel comprises: Sarah Wakefield, Executive Director at the Eating Better Alliance, Sophie Bauer, Head of Food System Transformation at WWF, Mark Breen, Senior Creative Partner at the environmental charity, Hubbub, and Dr Shireen Kasam, Consultant Haematologist and honorary Senior Lecturer at King's College Hospital, London, and founder of Plant Based Health Professionals UK. Click on the links below for more information on meat consumption and why we need to care, and here for the Food Foundation report, Meat Factshttps://foodfoundation.org.uk/publication/how-uks-supermarkets-stack-climate-change-commitmentshttps://foodfoundation.org.uk/publication/low-hanging-fruit-policy-pathway-boosting-uptake-plant-rich-dietsClick here for the Food Foundation Manifesto and here to sign up for the newsletter. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In this week's Pod Bite, Hannah Brinsden, head of policy and advocacy at the Food Foundation, tells us about our new report on early years nutrition.This report is the third in the series conducting an in-depth study on early years food and nutrition to investigate how the food system and food policy is contributing to the high levels of overweight and obesity in early childhood.Click here for the Food Foundation Manifesto and here to sign up for the newsletter. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Sonia Pombo, head of impact and research at Action on Salt, tells us about the charity's latest research published for Salt Awareness Week from May 12-18th, highlighting salt levels in ready meals and six ways we can reduce our salt intake.Click here for more information on Salt Awareness Week, here the Food Foundation Manifesto and here to sign up for the newsletter. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Jessica Sinclair Taylor, Deputy Director of Feedback, on its new Retailer Targets report, Commitment Issues; Why UK retailers climate commitments are failing to deliver and what can be done to fix it. The research, commissioned by Feedback and The Food Foundation shows that despite the UK's 10 major supermarkets making a climate commitment every six days – they are failing against own promises.Click here for the report, the Food Foundation Manifesto, here for its report Low Hanging Fruit, and here to sign up for the newsletter. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Alice English, Project Officer in the Business and Policy team at the Food Foundation tells us about a new policy pathway we have published this week in collaboration with Green Alliance and the Good Food Institute. Low Hanging Fruit is a set of pragmatic and easily implementable policy recommendations to boost plant-rich diets in the UK.Click here for more information on Low Hanging Fruit, the Food Foundation Manifesto and here to sign up for the newsletter. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Lucy Heyderman, Citizen Engagement Manager at the Food Foundation and Yusuf Shobair, one of our Young Food Ambassadors introduce The Food Activist Toolkit which helps young people find their voice and make real change in the food system.Click here to find out more about the Toolkit, here for the Food Foundation Manifesto and here to sign up for the newsletter. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Pete Smith, Professor of Global Change and Soils at the University of Aberdeen tells us about the Climate Inflation Project on how climate change affects food inflation causing food price spikes around the world, and how that affects people in the UK's most disadvantaged communities. Click here for more information on the project, here for the Food Foundation Manifesto and here to sign up for the newsletter. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Keira, one of the young food ambassadors at the Food Foundation, is with a panel of experts to find out about Auto Enrolment on Free School Meals. They explore how it can help the 250,000 children who are entitled to a free school meals but are missing out because of the barriers to registering.Professor Maria Bryant, researcher on Fix Our Food, the University of York's five-year research programme is joined by Myles Bremner, CEO of Bremner and co and a partner on the project, Peter Lamb MP, Councillor Gerald Vernon-Jackson, Deputy Chair of the Children and Young People's board at the Local Government Association and Rhett, a single father who reports from the front line of food poverty.Click on the links for more information on Fix our Food, the Food Foundation Manifesto and to sign up for the newsletter. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Sarah Buszard, Responsible Investor Engagement Lead at the Food Foundation explains the findings of our latest report, Corporate Lobbying: The Dark Side of the Plate. Click here for the Food Foundation Manifesto and here to sign up for the newsletter. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Hannah Brinsden, head of policy and advocacy at the Food Foundation reflects on the Spring Statement, how it could impact on food insecurity and what some of the opportunities are in the next few months to try and address this problem. Click here for the Food Foundation Manifesto and here to sign up for the newsletter. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In this week's Pod Bites, Callum Morrissey , a 15-year-old Welsh Youth Parliament member of Clwyd West and young ambassador for the Food Foundation, discusses the Youth Parliament's efforts to tackle child poverty in Wales.Click here for the Food Foundation Manifesto and here to sign up for the newsletter. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.