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  • 6 Minute Englishfrom BBC Learning English. Hello, this is 6 Minute English.

  • I'm Neil.

  • And I'm Sam.

  • Sam, have you considered the future of food much?

  • Well, I think in the future I might have a sandwichin about 30 minutes in the future.

  • Ehhh...not quite what I meant!

  • With the population of the world increasing along with the negative effects of climate change and other global issues, we might have to radically change our diets in the future.

  • Ah, yes, I have heard about this.

  • There are all sorts of developments from growing artificial meat to developing insect-based foods.

  • Mmm, tasty.

  • Well, we'll look a little more at this topic shortly, but we start, as ever, with a question and it's a food-based question.

  • In which continent did tomatoes originate?

  • Is it A: South America, B: Africa or C: Asia?

  • What do you think, Sam?

  • No idea.

  • I'm going to say Africa, but that's just a guess.

  • OK, well I will reveal the answer later in the program.

  • On a recent edition of BBC Radio 4's The Food Programme, there was an interview with Dr. Morgaine Gaye.

  • She is a futurologist.

  • A futurologist is someone who studies and predicts the way we will be living in the future.

  • Her particular area of expertise is the subject of food.

  • What two things does she say she thinks about?

  • As a food futurologist, I think about not just what we're going to be eating in the future but why.

  • Why that thing, why that trend, why will people suddenly latch onto that food, that way of eating that food at that particular time?

  • And when I work for large companies, that's what they want to know.

  • There is an element of a hunch.

  • And then proving or disproving that hunch.

  • So what two things does she think about?

  • She says that as a food futurologist, she thinks about what we will be eating in the future and also why we will be eating that food.

  • Yes, in particular, she looks at why there are particular trends.

  • A trend is what is popular now or what is becoming popular.

  • For example, at the moment, there is a trend for eating less red meat.

  • She also looks at why people latch onto particular trends.

  • To latch onto here means to be very interested in something.

  • So if you latch onto a particular food trend, you start to follow that trend, you might start eating that particular diet.

  • Information about future trends is very important for companies in the food business.

  • How does she actually predict these trends?

  • She says she starts with a hunch.

  • A hunch is a feeling you get that something is true.

  • You don't have any real evidence, but your experience and knowledge makes you think you might be right.

  • Let's listen again.

  • As a food futurologist, I think about not just what we're going to be eating in the future but why.

  • Why that thing, why that trend, why will people suddenly latch onto that food, that way of eating that food at that particular time?

  • And when I work for large companies, that's what they want to know.

  • There is an element of a hunch.

  • And then proving or disproving that hunch.

  • Dr. Gaye goes on to talk about how on the subject of food, there are restrictions.

  • Why is that?

  • Food business, of course, has different restrictions around it because it's about safety, we're ingesting that.

  • The supply chain and the labelling laws are very stringent especially in this country.

  • So it takes a lot longer to get an idea from just a concept that's discussed around a table to an actual production facility, labelled, branded, tested, marketed and put on the shelves.

  • So why restrictions?

  • Well, it's about safety.

  • Because we are ingesting food, which is a way of saying we are putting it into our bodies, it has to be safe.

  • It can be a long process of developing a new food and getting it into the shops because of the need to be safe and meet the laws of different countries.

  • In the U.K., she mentions that the food safety laws are very stringent.

  • This means that the laws are very tough, very strict.

  • Let's hear Dr. Gaye again.

  • Food business of course has different restrictions around it because it's about safety, we're ingesting that, the supply chain and the labelling laws are very stringent especially in this country.

  • So it takes a lot longer to get an idea from just a concept that's discussed around a table to an actual production facility, labelled, branded, tested, marketed and put on the shelves.

  • Right, well before we review our vocabulary, let's get the answer to the question.

  • In which continent did tomatoes originate?

  • Is it A: South America, B: Africa C: Asia?

  • Sam, what did you say?

  • I made a guess at Africa.

  • Well, I'm afraid that's not right.

  • Congratulations though to everyone who said South America.

  • Right, let's recap our words and expressions.

  • OK, well we started with the word "futurologist."

  • This is a noun to describe someone who studies and predicts the way we will be living in the future.

  • Then we had trend.

  • This word can describe what is popular now and the way in which what is popular is changing.

  • For example now we are seeing a trend for eating less red meat in some parts of the world.

  • If you latch onto something, you become interested in it and associate yourself with it.

  • We heard that people very quickly latch onto food trends.

  • Then there was "hunch."

  • A hunch is a feeling about something you think might be true even though you don't have real evidence for it.

  • Ingesting something means taking it into your body, so eating or drinking it.

  • And finally a stringent rule is a very strict rule, a tough rule or law which in connection to food is designed to make sure it is safe and of a suitable quality.

  • OK, thank you Sam.

  • That's all from 6 Minute English.

  • Goodbye!

  • Bye bye!

6 Minute Englishfrom BBC Learning English. Hello, this is 6 Minute English.

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