20 April 2023
By Tom Collins
tom@TheCork.ie
The new six-part documentary TV series ‘Food Matters’ presented by GIY Founder Mick Kelly airing on RTÉ One each Wednesday evening at 8.30pm is set to visit West Cork, Dublin, Kilkenny, Waterford and Kildare for the programme set to air on April 26th.
The series uncovers Ireland’s food sustainability and how the food system is a major contributor to the climate change emergency.
Throughout the series, the founder of GIY and the show’s presenter Mick Kelly travels across Ireland to meet with farmers, food producers, food experts, climate experts, chefs, economists, ecologists and activists as he digs deep to uncover the complexity of the Irish food system, how it works, how it delivers and how it impacts the environment.
Episode five is all about the concept of “Eating More Plants”. In recent years we have seen a growth in plant-based diets and products, and numerous studies have shown that some people are increasing the amount of plant-based foods in their diets and cutting back on their daily meat intake. As some of society is increasingly leaning towards a more plant based diet, we want to explore this concept and delve deeper into this issue. Scientists have warned that rising global meat consumption is likely to have a devastating environmental impact on the planet, but research has also revealed that switching from the average Western diet to a more plant based or flexitarian diet could decrease greenhouse gas emissions.
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So to start this episode Mick brings together three people for a very special meal and to chat about the topic of eating more plants including young environmental activist Alannah Wrynn in West Cork, dietician Orla Walsh in Dublin & beef farmer Kieran Sullivan in Waterford.
In Dublin, he talks to radio host Andrea Gilligan to get a view about public opinion on this issue.
Next in Kildare at one of Ireland’s top restaurants, AIMSÍR he chats to chef Jordan Bailey about putting veg front and centre discovering how this 2-michelin star restaurant can make vegetables as good as any meat dish.
In Kilkenny, he meets grower Pat Fitzgerald about some very alternative vegetables that may become staple crops in Ireland in the future including Yacon and Wasabi.
Back in Dublin, he visits a food yard to meet Food & Wine magazine editor Gillian Nelis to get the lowdown on how plant-based diets are changing the food industry; and the founders of vegan food truck YumGrub about working at the frontline of alternative meat diets.
‘Food Matters’ is filmed at GROW HQ in Waterford and features locations nationwide during each half-hour episode taking the audience on a new journey from plot to planet.
Food Matters is a six-part TV series for RTÉ produced by InProduction TV & Scéal Creative Ltd. and presented by Mick Kelly, Founder of GIY and supported by the EPA Stop Food Waste & ReThink Ireland. It airs on RTÉ One and RTÉ Player at 8:30 pm on Wednesdays until May 3rd. For further details see www.giy.ie or www.foodmatterstv.ie
