Preserving

Synopsis

The entertaining science series in which farmer Jimmy Doherty tries to discover what really goes into supermarket food. To find out, he goes back to basics and sets up his own food factory in a barn.

In this programme Jimmy tries to copy some of the methods food companies use to preserve food to make it safe to eat weeks, months or even years after it is produced. Why do peas have to be frozen within hours of picking and why is factory freezing quicker than home freezing? Jimmy also attempts to suck all the water out of strawberries so they can be added to a box of breakfast cereal.

Jimmy copies the factory preserving processes using a leaf blower, a vacuum cleaner, two dog bowls, and the flexible hose from an extractor fan.

Jimmy also investigates what is done to chilled ready meals to make them safe to eat after a week, and is surprised to discover that the answer is not artificial preservatives but clever use of heat. He also goes inside the world's biggest baked beans factory to discover how they make canned food safe to store in our cupboards for months and even years.

Credits

Presenter

Jimmy Doherty

Producer

Jerry Foulkes

Executive Producer

Greg Lanning

Broadcasts

1. Wed 11 Nov 2009
   19:30
   BBC One (Cambridgeshire, London, Northern Ireland, Scotland, Wales, Yorkshire only)
2. Wed 11 Nov 2009
   19:30
   BBC HD
3. Sat 14 Nov 2009
   16:05
   BBC HD
4. Wed 25 Nov 2009
   02:00
   BBC One