Family ties

Family ties

Author: BBC World Service December 25, 2025 Duration: 26:29

Food is at the centre of family life – on ordinary days, in the everyday rush, during the dramas, and the quieter moments too.

In this episode, Ruth Alexander looks back at some of The Food Chain's most moving and intimate moments of 2025, all revealing the power food has to bind people together.

From the first meal taken by a foster child in an unfamiliar home to the couple cooking together for the first time in their lives after a dementia diagnosis, these stories show how food has the capacity to strengthen family bonds and how its absence can shape a life just as deeply.

If you would like to get in touch with the show, please email: thefoodchain@bbc.co.uk

Producer: Rumella Dasgupta.


There’s a story behind every meal, and The Food Chain from the BBC World Service goes out to find it. This isn’t just a series about recipes or restaurant reviews; it’s a deep and often surprising exploration of how food shapes our world. Each episode follows a single thread, whether it’s the economic forces that decide what grows in a field, the hidden science in your kitchen, or the profound cultural traditions carried in a family dish. You’ll hear from farmers, chefs, economists, historians, and scientists, all contributing pieces to a larger picture about our global relationship with what we eat. The conversations reveal the complex journey from source to table, unpacking the labor, innovation, and sometimes the controversy, involved in feeding communities. Tuning into this podcast feels like joining a well-reported global conversation, one that changes how you think about the next thing you’ll eat. It connects the personal act of eating to vast systems of business, culture, and science, making the everyday subject of food endlessly fascinating.
Author: Language: English Episodes: 100

The Food Chain
Podcast Episodes
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