Explore the UK's first permanent Food Museum in Stowmarket, Suffolk. Discover the Thrills and Grills Program for children, ancient maize from Mexico, and a 50-year-old bean slicer. Step inside the dairy cottages frozen in time and learn about documenting working-class food. Delve into complex food issues, including the impact of the meat industry and regenerative agriculture.
The UK's first permanent Food Museum in Stowmarket aims to connect people to where their food comes from through interactive experiences and hands-on programs for children to learn about food growing and cooking.
The Food Museum challenges people's perspectives on food by presenting various issues and encourages critical thinking about food choices, aiming to foster a greater understanding of the social, environmental, and health aspects of food.
Deep dives
The UK's First Permanent Food Museum
The podcast discusses the establishment of the UK's first permanent food museum. Located in Stowmarket, Suffolk, the museum aims to cast light on the past, present, and future of food. It offers interactive experiences for visitors, including hands-on programs for children to learn about food growing and cooking. The museum focuses on interpreting processes, traditions, and food stories, highlighting the significance of food in our lives.
Expanding the Museum's Collections and Interpretations
The podcast explores how the museum has reshaped its collections and interpretations to tell food stories. Through visitor research, the museum discovered that people expect to find edible food in a food museum. Therefore, they offer programs where visitors can participate in growing, harvesting, and cooking food. The museum also aims to present the everyday experiences of working-class people and shed light on the history, culture, and social impact of food.
Challenging Perspectives on Food
The podcast emphasizes the museum's aim to challenge people's perspectives on food. By presenting various issues related to food, such as the meat industry, ultra-processed food, marketing influence, and sugar's historical and societal implications, the museum encourages visitors to think critically about their food choices. The goal is to foster a greater understanding of the complex social, environmental, and health aspects of food.
If food is one of life’s greatest pleasures, and also a lens through which we can interpret our history and how we live now, then surely it deserves a museum? The UK has only just got its first permanent Food Museum. It’s in Stowmarket in Suffolk, recently rebranded from The Museum of East Anglian Life. Sheila Dillon visits its beautiful 84 acres, with its historic buildings, crops, orchard, kitchen garden, water mill and animals to find out how the museum team are reinterpreting its collections to connect people to where our food comes from.
Presented by Sheila Dillon and produced by Sophie Anton for BBC Audio in Bristol
Get the Snipd podcast app
Unlock the knowledge in podcasts with the podcast player of the future.
AI-powered podcast player
Listen to all your favourite podcasts with AI-powered features
Discover highlights
Listen to the best highlights from the podcasts you love and dive into the full episode
Save any moment
Hear something you like? Tap your headphones to save it with AI-generated key takeaways
Share & Export
Send highlights to Twitter, WhatsApp or export them to Notion, Readwise & more
AI-powered podcast player
Listen to all your favourite podcasts with AI-powered features
Discover highlights
Listen to the best highlights from the podcasts you love and dive into the full episode