C4 announces two brand new Features and series 5 of Food Unwrapped

We live in a world dominated by consumerism, from the food that we put into our mouths to the cars that we drive, to the  holidays we take.  But what is the true value of the goods and services we purchase? Are  we getting exactly what we’re promised?

Channel 4 has commissioned two brand new Features series; “What's it Worth?” hosted by Dave Fishwick and Kate Quilton and The Truth About Superfoods presented by Kate Quilton. Following the success of ‘Food Unwrapped’ a fifth series has also been commissioned and will once again be hosted by Jimmy Doherty, Matt Tebbutt and Kate Quilton. All commissions are for Ricochet, a Warner Bros Television Production UK Ltd company.
 
What’s it Worth? sees Dave and Kate on a quest to see if and how the British public are being taken for a  ride by businesses big and small. In each show they’ll be exploring the  fine detail of the costs,  logistics and production methods surrounding the everyday services and consumer goods that  are inextricably woven into our modern lifestyles.  In short, the things  we’re spending all our hard-earned cash on and the things we would like to be buying too.

Based on an existing Warner Bros International Television Production format produced in Holland the series will question why is it that 16 people on the same flight have paid varying fares for their ticket?  Just how much does it cost to insure a dog, and the implications of not doing so?  What’s the true cost of a funeral? How can printer ink be one of the most expensive liquids in the world? How can some jeans be as little as a few pounds and others hundreds of pounds? And why are perfumes and aftershaves so expensive?
In a mixture of stunts, investigations, comparisons and product tests Kate and Dave  aim to provide a greater understanding of why our favourite products and services cost exactly what they do and, critically whether the prices we pay actually represent value for money. How are the products we buy changed without us knowing? How might we be led to believe we’re getting a great deal when in fact we’re not? This is the show that gives us the inside track on industry!

In The Truth about Superfoods (WT) Kate Quilton will be taking to the skies (and beyond!) to investigate the purported health benefits of the self-proclaimed ‘superfoods’. Can any food on the shelf today actually justify calling itself “super”?

Every day we are bombarded with far-fetched claims about the food we eat… the list is ever-growing and we’re spending more and more of our money in this fast-growing sector.  Even the humblest of foods like Grapefruit (fat-burning) and Broccoli (cancer-curing) make bold claims that border on dietary miracles, but can the food we eat really prevent heart attacks, slow down the aging process and fight flab. It seems seem too good to be true, but is it?

Alongside familiar foods we know and love we’ll also be looking at exotic and obscure products such as charcoal, wheatgrass, quinoa and spirulina.

In the series Kate will travel the world, go undercover in the UK, and seek out leading scientists, nutritionists and dietitians in a bid to discover just which foods are genuinely worth shelling out on and revealing just how much misleading information is out there… with surprising results.

Deputy Head of Features, Alex Menzies, says, “No one likes wasting their money, but spending money on something that’s not all that you believed it to be is particularly tough to take. Both of these new series tackle this ever-relevant issue head on, but in a way that doesn’t take itself too seriously, because,  after all, buying things is supposed to be fun. They’re shows which are  full of insight into the way business operates and should help us all become much savvier shoppers as a result.”

Simon Knight, Creative Director, Ricochet says “It is really exciting to be making series that all scrape away at the marketing hype and industry noise around the things we love to buy. The production teams at Ricochet have all developed strong noses for the truth over the years and will be combining their journalistic and entertainment skills to deliver some very revealing and very enjoyable television.”

ENDS
Production Information:

Production company: Ricochet (a Warner Bros Television Production UK Ltd company)

The Truth about Superfoods
Executive Producer: Simon Knight
Series Producer: Dave Mackay
Commissioning Editor, Features:  Alex Menzies

For further information please contact: Alex Dyche

What’s it Worth?
Executive Producer: Simon Knight & Sam Wilson
Series Producer: Steve Cole & Hannah Lamb
Commissioning Editor, Features:  Alex Menzies

For further information please contact: Steve Rosier