The Food Programme

Sheila Dillon embarks on a journey through the world of spice, starting with the clove. She follows the story of the clove from a harvest in Africa to sauce making with chef Jeremy Lee. A culinary prize since the 3rd century BC, cloves have been a source of conflict and competition for centuries. They're still one of the most popular spices in our kitchen cupboards.Reporter Nick Maes travels to Zanzibar, one of the world's leading producers of cloves, to find out how the dried, unopened flower buds are grown and then processed. He hears how years of decline have been reversed and plantations extended.Along with Jeremy Lee, Niki Segnit, author of The Flavour Thesaurus, provides a helpful guide to flavour combinations and the uses of cloves in cooking.

Can changing our dining utensils change the flavour of food? Simon Parkes investigates.

For most people, the idea of camping food is not an appetising one. You'll not find food-loving Tim Hayward under canvas unless it's in the big tent of a food festival.Tim has got wind of a man who is throwing all of his energy into changing forever how people see (and taste) camping food. Setting off on an arduous voyage to meet Josh Sutton - aka The Guyrope Gourmet - our intrepid presenter learns about tribal caches, a pioneering outdoorsman with a love of Italian cuisine, as well as a whole new way to experience 'local food'.Tim Hayward is joined by Matthew De Abaitua, author of 'The Art of Camping'.Producer: Rich Ward.

Simon Parkes hears from some of the listeners who've sent in their nominations for this year's Food and Farming Awards.Their stories cover a variety of foods, places and people, from the Glasgow curry cart, to the man so obsessed with the local jam he discovered that he finds himself making jam sandwiches at 10 o' clock at night 'grinning like a five year old.'Producer: Maggie Ayre.

Can Health Secretary Andrew Lansley change Britain's bad eating habits? Sheila Dillon hears how the debate is shaping up on the "responsibility deals" aimed at changing our diet.With over 60 per cent of the British population now overweight or obese everyone agrees that change is needed in how we eat and what we eat. One part of the government's strategy involve so called responsibility deals, agreements with the food industry based around a series of pledges. A growing number of food manufacturers and retailers have signed up, pledging to reduce calories, remove salt and harmful trans-fats from food. But will it deliver a big enough change in the nation's diet?Sheila Dillon finds out how the Danish government has recently opted to place a tax on nutrients like saturated fat and sugar, meanwhile in New York City, mayor Michael Bloomberg has placed a ban on ingredients like trans-fats and is now placing restrictions on the size of soft drink portions.So, to tax, ban or adopt voluntary agreements on food? Sheila hears how the three different ideas are being developed. Producer: Dan Saladino.

What began as a writing project for school has, in two short months, become an internet phenomenon that is changing the way people are looking at the food children eat."NeverSeconds" is the food blog of nine year old Martha Payne (AKA 'VEG'), from Lochgilpead in the West of Scotland. Inspired by a family friend who is a journalist, Martha started to photograph and rate her school dinners.A few weeks ago her story went global when her local council banned her from taking any more of these photographs. The council backed down after a massive public outcry, but the profile of the site had by then been boosted irreversibly.What next for Martha and her father Dave, and the rest of the Payne family? Sheila Dillon went to their thirteen acre smallholding to meet them and find out.Sheila discovered a family very much in tune with where their food comes from, and went on a journey that took in celebrity chef and food campaigner Nick Nairn, a llama, haggis lasagne and a chance to change the Scottish food system.Producer: Rich Ward.

Sheila Dillon asks if food is the key to reviving the Britain' declining high streets. Food expert, Henrietta Green visits Croydon town centre which has just been awarded a grant by retail guru,Mary Portas to see if a radical food future is possible and asks what are the barriers to bringing quality food back to our high streets.Producer: Maggie Ayre.

With digital publishing evolving at a blistering pace, Sheila Dillon investigates the future of the printed cookery book.Andrew Webb is a food journalist whose work spans the online and printed worlds. He is the author of 'Food Britannia', which just scooped the Guild of Food Writers award for Food Book of the Year, and also edits a food website. To find out where things are moving in the world of the food book, The Food Programme sent him to meet five key players in the world of food, books and publishing.Antony Topping is a literary agent, whose clients include Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall and Thomasina Miers. Mary-Clare Jerram is a Publishing Director at Dorling Kindersley, looking after both digital and print editions. Ian Malone runs a company specialising in food apps for phones and tablets. Andrew also meets Dr Peter Ross, Principal Librarian at the Guildhall Library, home to the largest collection of food books in any UK public library - and lastly, Hardeep Singh Kohli is a broadcaster, author and is passionate about food.Sheila is joined in the studio by Neill Denny, Editor-in-Chief of the book industry magazine 'The Bookseller', Kerstin Rodgers - aka MsMarmitelover - food blogger and pop-up restaurant pioneer, and Ben Ebbrell, who cooks and presents on the Sorted food site.Producer: Rich Ward.

Sheila Dillon meets Jan Matthews head of the UK's biggest catering job, organising food for the Olympics, London 2012 to ask how successful she's been with the "Olympic Food Vision" that promised to showcase the best of British food. She also meets the Chair of London Food, Rosie Boycott to hear the latest on the city's growing initiative that aims to be part of the Olympic food legacy.Producer: Maggie Ayre.

In this special programme Sheila Dillon launches the search for this year's winners of the BBC Food & Farming Awards.Sheila is joined by Michelin-starred chef Angela Hartnett to catch up with some of the recent winners and nominees. With insights from last year's winners of the Best Food Producer award - Loch Arthur Creamery - to the Best Market - Bolton - we hear why the awards make a real difference.Valentine Warner and Pete Brown, both new to the judging team this year, give their take on the Drinks Producer and Market categories, and Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall, also a winner in 2011, explains why these awards really do matter.Producer: Rich Ward.