Gastropod looks at food through the lens of science and history.
Co-hosts Cynthia Graber and Nicola Twilley serve up a brand new episode every two weeks.
Is Your Cinnamon Fake? Where Does Kefir Come From? Plus: Why Is Citric Acid In Everything? Ask Gastropod!
The season for holiday baking is upon us, and before you spice up your cookies and pies, you’ll probably want to know: is most of the cinnamon on grocery store shelves actually fake? That’s one question we’re investigating this week on behalf of you, dear listeners, in the latest installment of our popular Ask Gastropod series! This episode, we've got the scoop on what's real when it comes to cinnamon—because your buns deserve the truth. We're also putting our detective hats on to figure out where in the world kefir comes from, in an epic tale that involves mummies, a prince, and a potential kidnapping. Finally, if you look at almost any label, from jam to ice cream to soda to sausage, you'll find one shared ingredient: citric acid. What on Earth is this additive doing in everything, how is its spread connected to a technology that has saved millions of lives—and is it safe to eat? Listen in for a festive feast of listener curiosity, and keep your awesome questions coming our way!
Episode Notes
Kantha Shelke
Kanthe Shelke is a food-scientists and the co-founder of Corvus Blue, a food research and consulting firm, as well as a senior lecturer at Johns Hopkins University. She's a Gastropod fan favorite: check out her star appearances on previous episodes about vegan cheese and Jell-O.
Judah Ginsberg
Judah Ginsberg is a freelance writer and a former manager of the National Historic Chemical Landmarks Program for the American Chemical Society, for which he wrote about the Pfizer plant in Brooklyn.
Iliana Sweis
Iliana Sweis is a plastic surgeon at the University of Illinois at Chicago. You can read her case study into manufactured citric acid responses in the journal Toxicology Reports.
Paul Cotter
Paul Cotter leads the Food Biosciences Department at Teagasc, Ireland's Agriculture and Food Development Authority.
Justine Lee
Justine Lee is a food writer and cinnamon lover. She wrote about the different types of cinnamon for King Arthur.
The Alfred P. Sloan Foundation for the Public Understanding of Science, Technology, and Economics
This episode of Gastropod was supported by a generous grant from the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation for the Public Understanding of Science, Technology, and Economics. Check out the other books, movies, shows, podcasts, and more that they support here.
The Burroughs Wellcome Fund
This episode of Gastropod was supported in part by the Burroughs Wellcome Fund for our coverage of biomedical research.