F2F
FACE TO FACE Ursula meets:
Ursula meets amazing people who influence nutrition policies and practices in the UK.
Ursula Arens Writer; Nutrition & Dietetics Ursula has a degree in dietetics, and currently works as a freelance nutrition writer. She has been a columnist on nutrition for more than 30 years.
STEFAN GATES Food writer and broadcaster Host of 300+ food science live shows Gastronaut - explorer of food frontiers
When Stefan invited me to his house, he promised me magic - and delivered! After being told to eat two thirds of a digestive biscuit, not-more-not-less, he lit some bioethanol in a large container: “The huge flame exactly demonstrates the energy in the biscuit you ate,” he said . . . We then juiced some red cabbage and added lemon juice or washing powder (acid or alkali), to watch a constant back and forth of pink and blue colour change: “Red cabbage juice contains a pH indicator,” he said. The last feat involved licking dabs of citric acid, bicarbonate of soda and icing sugar aka sherbet: “A great way to demonstrate the production of carbon dioxide with the addition of water from saliva,” he said. Stefan is known for being a food adventurer, and I knew enough not to accept the cup of tea he then offered. He will be familiar to younger dietitians, or those with children, as a presenter of many CBBC programmes about food, and has presented hundreds of large venue live shows to both adult and school audiences, to support a more scientific interest in the foods we eat. In fact, all school children in Camden, London, will enjoy attending one of his food-is-amazing shows at the new Francis Crick Institute this summer. You might have even seen him at the Big Bang Science Fair in Birmingham in March earlier this year.
Perhaps his showman skills started when his mum let him and his sister miss chunks of schooling to do smallpart film roles during childhood, which did not hinder his getting into Oxford University to read English. Between literature and endless essays, Stefan delighted in trying new foods. “But the herring toasted sandwich was perhaps a step too far,” concedes Stefan. His early career was at the BBC as a scriptwriter and director and he enjoyed the variety and challenge of a career in visual media. But food was always a big interest to him: the-what and the-why of food choice. He was inspired by the fresh approach of the chain-smoking, hard-drinking TV chef Keith Floyd and the genius food writings of MFK Fischer. “At the time, so much that was written and shown about food was so timid and boring and only related to etiquette or trivia.” He was sure he could do better, and started producing screen clips of food presentations, which he shared with friends and media contacts. In due course (in 2004), Stefan was invited to present the BBC2 series Full on Food. During very competitive interviews for the role, everyone was asked to describe favourite foods. Others selected rare delicacies; Stefan chose ‘cheesy Wotsits’ (which must have convinced the selectors of his original and left-field approach - just what was needed for the show). The series was a huge success, but would another www.NHDmag.com June 2017 - Issue 125
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F2F series be commissioned? His producer contacted him with the good-news, yes, but bad-news, not with you call. Instead, experimental chef Heston Blumenthal was selected as the next presenter. But Stefan had made his mark as an adventurous food explorer and sparky presenter and the next decade involved writing many books and hosting many TV shows about food. The BBC2 series Cooking in the Danger Zone looked at the politics and culture of food and was a tight mix of great fun and very scary. “We travelled to many different countries to try to really understand the challenges around food choices. From Uganda, to Afghanistan, to Tonga, to Japan, people were welcoming and keen to share their cuisines. But many foods selected were outcomes of extreme and challenging environments, and we often felt sad at the difficult choices people were forced to make,” said Stefan. Further shows steered towards science aspects of foods. BBC2 commissioned a series looking at E-Numbers used in food and Stefan had to steer carefully between the expert views of some scientists and the strongly held views of some consumer groups. He researched and presented the BBC4 documentary Can insects save the world? And he has just released a book this month on eating insects. Although insect eating is being much discussed as a future more sustainable food source, I suggested that the excitements were premature. “Why would we all start eating insects to replace beef, when beans and pulses are so protein rich and readily available?” I pondered. Stefan looked at my halfwit comment with astonishment. “People don’t seek meat because of its protein. They choose it for its flavour. It is astonishing how much people in poverty are willing to do, to flavour starchy foods, with almost unaffordable small amounts of meat. Insects will be the protein flavourings of our future foods,” he insisted. “I would give it about 20 years for insects to become a common
feature in UK diets.” Other than insectology, Stefan’s future plans relate to discussions of food physics and food engineering, and no doubt food technologists will be delighted to have such a communication champion on their side. “Dietitians are the good guys,” said Stefan, unprompted. We discussed the issues of nutrition professionals battling the very public arena of nutrition advice, with bloggers promoting books and beauty. He described the concerns of a wellknown celebrity over ‘de-natured’ proteins. He said, “she is right, of course, that so many of the foods we eat are de-natured: it is because they are cooked… duh!” He thinks that much more should be done to teach and support children to understand foods and health. But flashing the Eatwell Guide around will never achieve anything. “Dry messages will never motivate children to change their diets. Information needs to be entertaining and engaging,” he said. He is right, but a difficult challenge for dietitians communicating in a professional environment. And did watching visually stunning shows presented with drama and slickness really inspire children to improve their food choices? He couldn’t prove this, or provide any data, but said that so many parents contacted him describing a more open and interested approach to the food choices their children made. It was a big step forward for many children to try different and hopefully healthier foods. Stefan really is an amazing culinary adventurer. And while open to every cultural and historical and anthropological aspect of foodism, he is keen to steer science-wards. It may be a challenge to sprinkle culinary sparkle onto insect eating, but he is fully engaged to try. Ditto food science and technology. His career as a food obsessive has opened many minds to different ways of eating; I left our meeting, openminded and open-mouthed.
If you would like to suggest a F2F date
(someone who is a ‘shaker and mover’ in UK nutrition) for Ursula, please contact:
info@networkhealthgroup.co.uk www.NHDmag.com June 2017 - Issue 125
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