They say breakfast is the most important meal of the day - but what happens when thousands of children arrive at school too hungry to learn? In this programme, Jaega Wise looks into how the Government’s new free breakfast club scheme is being rolled out across England, seven months into a trial involving 750 primary schools. While the policy which aims to tackle hunger and improve attendance is welcomed by all, schools and campaigners raise questions about it's future funding and the exclusion of secondary schools and some special school pupils.At Holy Trinity Church of England School in Tottenham, Jaega visits a breakfast club being run in partnership with Chefs in Schools, where hot food is cooked fresh each morning in the same kitchen that serves lunch. In Weston-super-Mare, headteacher Marie Berry explains why her school’s breakfast club is a lifeline for families - and why she’s keen to be included in the new scheme. Campaigners at Sustain argue breakfast clubs could be a powerful tool to support local food producers and promote sustainable sourcing - and urge the Government to back that vision.We also hear from the charity Magic Breakfast, which provides food to 300,000 children at breakfast clubs every day, and from Olivia Bailey MP at the Department for Education. Food writer Michael Zee of @SymmetryBreakfast discusses Britain's breakfast culture, and why we so often eat the same thing every day.Presented by Jaega Wise
Produced by Natalie Donovan for BBC Audio in Bristol.
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Eels and Elvers
Dan Saladino looks at why eels numbers are plummeting and asks if the species can be saved. On the River Severn he meets the last of the glass eel fishermen and conservationists.Produced and presented by Dan Saladino.
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Keeping It Local: A Suffolk Story
It's twenty years since the Aldeburgh Food Festival began. Sheila Dillon examines its impact in this small Suffolk seaside town where food producers work together to forge strong local supply chains. She speaks to the festival's co-founder Lady Caroline Cranbrook who has been a passionate advocate of Suffolk's rich food ecosystem. She goes on a shopping trip with local restaurateur and hotelier George Pell, a self-styled "blow-in" from London. They visit a fishing family, a butcher and a farmer supporting a start-up serving crullers in a town where collaboration is king.Produced in Bristol for BBC Audio by Robin Markwell
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Feeding Britain: Can Our Best Food Producers Deliver?
Sheila Dillon and this year’s head judge of the BBC Food and Farming Awards, Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall, hit the road to meet the finalists in the Best Food Producer category. From sourdough pioneers Aidan Monks and Catherine Connor at Lovingly Artisan in Kendal, and regenerative grower Calixta Killander at Flourish Produce in Cambridgeshire, to cheese champions Andy and Kathy Swinscoe at The Courtyard Dairy in North Yorkshire — they explore how these exceptional producers might hold clues to a more resilient food future. Inspired by Professor Tim Lang’s recent report, Just in Case: narrowing the UK civil food resilience gap, the episode asks: could these small but significant businesses be part of the solution to Britain’s food security crisis?Presented by Sheila Dillon
Produced for BBC Audio in Bristol by Natalie Donovan
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The Food Innovators: 2025
Dan Saladino meets people behind pioneering projects rethinking the future of chocolate, seafood and food forests. Which one will win this year's BBC Best Food Innovation Award?Produced and presented by Dan Saladino.
Colombia