Dinner unboxed

Meal kits have become a familiar part of food shopping in many countries, offering pre-portioned ingredients and recipes delivered to the door. But how widespread are they, and what do they reveal about how people are eating today? Ruth Alexander hears from Philip Doran, CEO of HelloFresh UK and Ireland, and Sarah Hewitt, CEO of South African meal kit company UCOOK, about how these services operate in very different markets. She also speaks to Dr Rebecca Bennett, a food systems researcher, about what meal kits say about changing cooking habits and online food platforms, and to market analyst Nandini Roy on how big the global meal kit industry is and where future growth may come from. Producer: Izzy Greenfield Sound engineer: Hal Haines If you would like to get in touch with the show, please email: thefoodchain@bbc.co.uk Image: A woman unpacks a box full of food (credit: Getty Images)

You can listen to Dinner unboxed online on Radio and Podcast. Open the player on this page to stream the available audio.

Dinner unboxed is an episode from The Food Chain by BBC.

This episode is 26:29 long.

This episode was published on Jan 22, 2026.

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