Food is an integral part of cultural identity, and moving abroad can often mean finding yourself longing for your favorites from home and missing the social element of a shared meal. But a region’s food scene is also very much an economic and business matter: how do you balance out chains and locally owned establishments? How does having a big student population influence the dining scene in a city? How cost effective is it to own and operate a food truck in a country that isn’t exactly known for excellent weather?

Freelance journalist Saskia Jonke, author of the culinary blog De Smaak van Stad, discusses the culinary scene of the northern Netherlands in this episode of Econ 050. You can hear the full episode here.