A History of Food Waste and Preservation

Hello!Today I have the pleasure to interview historian Dr Eleanor Barnett about her new book, "Leftovers".The interview was conducted in January, in anticipation of her new book which is coming out on Thursday 14th of March, as a hardback from Head of Zeus.Preservation of food, and waste management isn't a new problem for our globalized societies. It's part of humankind's story from very early on.On this episode Dr. Eleanor Barnett will talk about the past 600 years -give or take- and what happened in Britain specifically from Tudor era until today- with an eye looking into our future! Why food was wasted in the past? How it was wasted? And what did they do with all the food waste that they created?In times of abundance it's easy to forget how tough can be to feed one's family and self. In the past when harvest failed, prices rose, riots followed; when unscrupulous merchants tried to sell the produce unfairly or abroad, mobs descented and took the wheat or cheese for themselves. Yet now we throw away seemingly an endless supply of perfectly good to eat food. 46% of UK waste is from households and hospitality today. Agriculture and farming for 28%, food processing and manufacturing for 17%, and food distribution for 9%. This equates to 9.5 million tonnes every single year. Globally 14% is lost between harvest and retail, and 11% in households. So let's take a deep dive in the past and find out more!Dr Eleanor Barnett posts on instagram as @historyeats and here's her website:https://www.eleanorbarnett.com/ Support this show http://supporter.acast.com/the-delicious-legacy. If you love to time-travel through food and history why not join us at https://plus.acast.com/s/the-delicious-legacy. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

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Imagine yourself dining with Socrates, Plato, or Pythagoras... maybe even Cicero and Julius Caesar...being a soldier marching with Alexander's the Great army in the vast Persian empire discovering new foods... or try and picture the richness of fruits and vegetables in the lush Hanging Gardens of Babylon...what foods did our ancestors ate?How did all begin? Why am I so hooked on ancient recipes and ingredients? Is the food delicious? Wholesome? Do you need to know? I think so! Recipes, ingredients, ways of cooking. Timeless and continuous yet unique and so alien to us now days. Staple ingredients of the Mediterranean world -as we think now- like tomatoes, potatoes, rice, peppers, didn't exist. What did they eat? We will travel and imagine how it was to eat like a Greek Philosopher in a symposium in Athens, as a Roman Emperor or as a rich merchant in the last night in Pompeii......Lavish dinners, exotic ingredients, barbaric elements, all intertwined...Stay tuned and find out more here, in 'The Delicious Legacy' Podcast!Find all out, right here!Support this show http://supporter.acast.com/the-delicious-legacy. If you love to time-travel through food and history why not join us at https://plus.acast.com/s/the-delicious-legacy. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.