Press Association
Jimmy Doherty’s new documentary The World’s Best Diet has found people living in impoverished, rural Ethiopia eat more healthily than the average Brit.
In his new Channel 4 documentary, the farmer and co-presenter Kate Quilton head to the likes of Ethiopia, France, Mexico and around the UK, to find out how our diets impact our health.
Jimmy said: “People want to get back to understanding [healthy eating] rather than [it] being seen as posh food or food for those who are well off.
“We should spend more money on food. It’s a necessity and there’s a weird dichotomy in this country, where the very poor tend to have the very worst food, and then if you look at Ethiopia, in the rural areas where they’re desperately poor, they have some of the best [diets].
“It’s wholesome food but food is key and central to everything [in Ethiopia], whereas in our culture it’s seen as an annoyance and we want it quick and easy, cheap and cheerful, and yet we’ll have extra money to spend on our Sky subscriptions or our latest phones.”
The Jimmy’s Farm presenter is father to two daughters, Molly, three, and one-year-old Cora with wife Michaela, and admits he does allow his children to eat junk food as a treat.
“Do I give my kids crisps? Well they do have crisps but it’s not every day, it’s seen as a treat and they’ll have a small amount,” he said. “But equally, my kids will fight over a tomato and a cucumber.”
:: The World’s Best Diet airs on Channel 4 on Monday, June 30.