Feature - Upfront
Petra Bagust
by Matt Nippert
One-time virgin queen Petra Bagust used to be the face of travel shows and children’s television. Now a happily married mother-of-three, Bagust has moved on to host awards nights, real-estate shows (Hot Property) and social documentaries (The Perfect Age). TV Guide’s “sexiest woman on television in 2003” returns to our screens in yet another serious guise – as host of What’s Really in Our Food?
So, what is really in our food? A multitude and a magnitude of weird and wonderful things. Some of which are good, and some of which are not so good.
Every week, there’s a news story saying that coffee, wine, milk or red meat is either good or bad for us. How did you assess contradictory advice? I started out thinking: “I’m finally going to get answers to questions, and the discussion will no longer need to take place – we will know once and for all.” The reality, of course, is that life is not quite like that. What we’re doing with the show is a healthy amount of myth-busting and red-flagging.
What are some of the myths you have busted? That fish fingers are made from the scraps of fish – heads, tails and guts – which are left over after you’ve taken the fillets off.
So, what are fish fingers actually made of? They are made with fish fillets and fillers. You can add fillers, like soy and other things. The fish-finger company that was happy to let us film is one which uses fish fillets. Then you have to ask yourself the question: “Well, what are they putting on the outside of my fish finger?” That’s the next level, and we didn’t do a lot of that. But companies are moving away from saturated fats towards unsaturated fats for cooking.
What’s your take on the debate over country-of-origin labelling? This is a multilayered issue. New Zealand exports so much food, and if we insist that every product we import has to say its country of origin so we can avoid it, the same thing could be done to us. The Government is nervous about that.
Surely a “Made in New Zealand” stamp is a positive for exporters? I think that labelling information would be helpful, but if it promoted some form of xenophobia, that would be bad. It’s about balance between supporting local growers and being open to overseas producers, and I think knowledge is power. Then, of course, there are these myths that roam around, like at the moment everyone is going: “Whooooooo! China! China’s a pariah.” Well, tainted toothpaste made in China did kill 51 people in Panama. China will have to change its ways if it wants to keep exporting. It’s only a matter of time before that market cleans itself up. But, until then, it would be nice to know the country of origin.
Is “organic” simply a trendy label? What’s the actual benefit from such foods? That’s another ongoing debate. I think it’s more than a fashionable label, but there can be an over-reaction.- People who can’t afford organic aren’t all going to drop dead in the street. It’s complicated. Organic is an option, and I think there are probably some good things from it.
But how much value does it give you? I’m not sure. But if organic makes you sleep better at night and decreases your blood pressure, it’s probably healthy.
Eating healthy is all well and good, but how can you get children to eat their vegetables? Do you reckon Jessica Seinfeld is onto something with her “hide the spinach in brownies” recipes? That’s hilarious. I have a friend who supplies me with meatballs occasionally. They’re meatballs,- but they have rice, carrot, broccoli and all sorts of vegetables I love in them. I give my kid a vegetable and then go: “My kid doesn’t like carrots.” But the first time I tasted olives, I didn’t like them either. Olives were everywhere, I kept trying them, and eventually I got a taste for them. It takes time to change an eating habit; it takes time to change any habit. It takes time for children to learn to like new foods.
WHAT’S REALLY IN OUR FOOD? TV3, Tuesday, 8.00pm.
