SBS Food creates and acquires diverse programs that take viewers on a journey of cultural discovery through world cuisine, providing a glimpse into vibrant, multicultural Australian communities and a shared experience between families, friends and strangers. The channel is an evolution of SBS’s proud heritage in food, offering a broad range of programming with a focus on distinctive Australian content.

With more than four million Australians tuning in each month to SBS Food, the channel continues to reach a broad audience.¹

SBS Food is a multiplatform offering available on air, online, and on demand, and has a highly-engaged digital audience. The channel is a valuable vehicle for reaching new audiences, also generating a commercial return enabling SBS to further invest in distinctive local content across the network.

New Australian commissions

SBS continues to invest in local food programs that explore the cultures and cuisine of multicultural Australia. Local productions this year focused on the importance of immigration on the changing food landscape in Australia.

Commissions celebrating Australia’s diverse cultures through food included Asia Unplated with Diana Chan, Cook Like an Italian with Silvia Colloca, Jimmy Shu’s Taste of the Territory, Loving Gluten Free, The Sweet Life with Elise Strachan, Ainsley Harriot’s Australian Market Menu, and Luke Nguyen’s Railway Vietnam.

Jimmy Shu’s Taste of the Territory

“Another delightful addition to SBS’ impressive local food library. In this one, chef Jimmy Shu describes the Northern Territory food scene as one of the country’s best-kept secrets. And he’s not wrong. Wildly multicultural, with a rich indigenous culture and access to a huge array of produce, it’s a hotbed of interesting and adventurous cuisine. But too few people think of it as a food destination. The perfect time to daydream about/plot a visit to the tropical north.” – Melinda Houston, The Sydney Morning Herald / The Age

Part travelogue, part food odyssey, part cooking show, Jimmy Shu’s Taste of the Territory showcased the Northern Territory’s kaleidoscope of culture and cuisine.

The eight-part series was produced in partnership with Screen Territory, helping to develop the Northern Territory screen sector. Over decades and across generations, a great variety of migrants have made Darwin their home and contributed significantly to its unique culture and dining scene. Chinese, Vietnamese, Thai, Indian, Cambodian, Malay and Indonesian food are just some of the cuisines loved and eaten everyday by locals.

The series reached more than 704,000² Australians.

Asia Unplated with Diana Chan

This 10-part series, hosted by Diana Chan, premiered in December 2019. Each episode focused on a different Asian cuisine, showcasing traditional and modern recipes from countries including Vietnam, Thailand, India and Malaysia. Special guests and passionate foodies joined Diana in the kitchen to show audiences their favourite Asian recipes, their unique cooking styles and the rich food histories of their chosen cuisine.

The series has reached more than one million³ Australians on SBS Food.

Cook Like an Italian with Silvia Colloca

This series saw Silvia Colloca sharing personal tips and techniques learned from her Italian heritage, encouraging viewers to think, shop and stock the pantry like an Italian – and to cook like one.

Each episode featured three dishes cooked by Silvia in her kitchen. Viewers journeyed to Italian delis, markets and bakeries with her, in search of the freshest ingredients. After the success of Made in Italy on SBS in 2015, this new series was a great opportunity to bring Silvia back to SBS audiences.

The series reached more than one million⁴ people in its premiere run on SBS Food.

Loving Gluten Free

Broadcast in October 2019, Loving Gluten Free was SBS Food’s first commission that focused on a dietary subject. Through the prism of multicultural recipes and food, Helen Tzouganatos explored a variety of gluten-free offerings from diverse cuisines, be it Greek, Italian, or African.

The series reached more than 1.1 million⁵ people and generated strong audience engagement online.

The Sweet Life with Elise Strachan

Popular social media baking personality, Elise Strachan, was welcomed into the SBS Food family with her new series The Sweet Life.

This series saw Elise uncover the Australian restaurants, patisseries, bakeries and stalls lighting up social media here and abroad, with eye-catching desserts from numerous chefs, inspired by their cultural heritage. Guests joined Elise in her kitchen, where she divulged all the tips and tricks so audiences could try the recipes at home.

The series reached more than 492,000 Australians.⁶ Partnering with a social media star also provided SBS Food with a large online fanbase.

SBS Food in the community

SBS Food carried its partnership with Western Australia Gourmet Escape into a fourth year in 2019. This year SBS strengthened integration with SBS Radio, attending the National Multicultural Festival in Canberra, Greek Festival in Melbourne and Curryfest Woolgoolga, handing out SBS Food recipe cards and running cookbook competitions.

Several partnership events were unfortunately cancelled due to COVID-19, including dessert festival Sweetstock, cheese festival Mould, and a partnership with Orange Food Week to connect with regional audiences.