S5 Ep11: Can you be vegan in Antarctica?

Can you be plant-based in Antarctica? Can you go South if you have food allergies, or other dietary restrictions? What's on the menu when you're 1,000 miles from the nearest supermarket?

In this episode of Iceworld, Nadia is joined by three members of the team at King Edward Point - boating officer AJ, station leader Cameron, and doctor Tom - all of whom are vegan. Together, they discuss what it's really like to maintain a plant-based diet at one of the most remote research stations on Earth, from dairy-free milk deliveries to improvised fish pie (not everyone's favourite, it turns out).

After that, Nadia speaks with Olivier Hubert, BAS catering manager and experienced chef. Olivier reveals the sheer scale of feeding five Antarctic research stations - some of which receive fresh food just once a year, how the kitchen manages everything from severe allergies to religious dietary requirements, and why a well-timed dessert buffet might just be the most important morale tool on station.

Tune in to discover how food becomes far more than fuel at the bottom of the world, and why, when the weather closes in and the workload piles up, a good meal can make all the difference.

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Welcome to Antarctica. What's it like living and working in one of the most extreme environments in the world? From polar scientists to plumbers, ICEWORLD is a series of interviews with ordinary people who are doing extraordinary jobs in Antarctica. The team talk climate science, extreme living, expeditions and becoming a community.

A podcast from British Antarctic Survey, hosted and recorded by marine biologist Nadia Frontier.

Produced in partnership with Boffin Media.