Shadowing Practice: Ube: The purple food taking over your feed - What in the World podcast, BBC World Service - Learn English Speaking with YouTube
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When things become a trend, it's very easy for larger companies to take advantage of that.
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When things become a trend, it's very easy for larger companies to take advantage of that.
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But I'm really worried about supporting the Philippines economically.
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The first time that I really noticed a big spike in demand was sometime around mid 2025.
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Now I'm getting inquiries from practically every continent of the world. Hey, it's Hannah Gelbart here.
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Welcome to What in the World from the BBC World Service.
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I have got a purple drink in my hand to help me get through the recording today.
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And I'm going to take a sip.
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It's delicious. I've never had a purple drink before.
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It tastes kind of like vanilla, earthy, nutty, very, very, very sweet.
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But the most amazing thing about it is the colour.
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It's got this deep purple colour at the bottom, and then it goes into a kind of light lilac as it goes up the cup.
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And bright purple foods and drinks like this have been absolutely everywhere on my timeline recently.
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I'm sure you might have seen some of them too, in lattes, hot chocolates, ice creams, even cosmetics.
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And this purple colour here, it comes from an ube, which is a purple yam type of root vegetable from the Philippines.
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It's been around for thousands of years, but social media has made it go viral.
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And the more I looked into Ube, the more I found that it raised some interesting questions about money, about culture, and about who actually benefits when something goes viral.
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So today you're going to hear why Ube has taken off and how some Filipinos feel about their food becoming a massive trend.
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I'm going to take one more sip here and then put it down so I don't spill it.
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And in the studio with me, we have Becca Jones, who is a BBC reporter.
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Hey, welcome. Hi. How are you doing?
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Good. Thank you. Have you tried Ube?
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What do you think of it? I have tried it.
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I will say I'm a coffee lover.
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Yeah, so it's a bit of a shift for me. But I am a fan.
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I'm a fan. And it isn't a new thing.
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People have been eating ube for centuries.
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Can you talk us through how it's used in the Philippines and in Southeast Asia, where it's originally from?
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Yeah. So like you said, it's been around for thousands of years and it's super commonplace in Filipino kitchens.
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A really common way to have it is something called Ube Halaya, which is where you take the ube and you cut it up, it's cooked alongside condensed milk or a sweetened milk, butter and sugar, and then it's sort of made into a sort of ube jam, which can be served in a number of ways, or it can be put on top of a really common shaved ice dessert called a Halo Halo.
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So yeah, it's super common place.
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But mainly kind of desserty - it's also used in some savoury foods I read as well.
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And why do you think it has become this massive global trend?
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Is it mainly because of the colour? I think so.
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Like coming on the back of the big trend with matcha or acai bowls, or even if we look at things like avocado on toast, going back, anything that's bright coloured, instagrammable, it's going to be really popular with people.
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But I will say that Uber is actually - it's not as an overnight trend as people think.
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It's been mentioned, as, you know, flavour of the year going back to 2021, 2023.
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So it's sort of this sort of slow burn trend that really took off at the end of 2025 and into this year.
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And now we're seeing it in these massive international coffee shop chains.
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We're seeing it in bakeries.
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And of course, it is just all over social media.
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And this trend really got me thinking about how some Filipinos might feel about one of their local foods, about something they grew up with suddenly becoming a massive global trend.
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And we're going to hear from some of them now. This is Cassielle.
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My reaction is very protective.
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Ube is a staple in many Filipino families homes, and it's connected to memory and family.
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When things become a trend, it's very easy for larger companies to take advantage of that and use it for their next big product.
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But I'm really worried about supporting the Philippines economically and getting its recognition because it is indigenous to the Philippines.
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I even had this experience where I went to a restaurant and the waiter told me that my ube cocktail was a Japanese root and I was so disappointed.
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And I had to educate him because he was spreading misinformation about something that he was selling and giving us.
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So I think it's so important just to amplify that so people know about what they're consuming. And here's Jane.
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Whenever anything Filipino gets recognised internationally, it makes me so excited and so proud.
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And that was my initial emotion with the rise of Ube.
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But now I am more concerned than anything, because what I thought would be a big moment for the Philippines and Filipino farmers is actually quite the opposite because there's a shortage of Ube in the Philippines.
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Now, farmers are not necessarily profiting off of this, but I'm seeing huge brands that are not Filipino profit off of this.
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And this is Jhesset who is an environmental journalist based in Manila.
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Like any other food trends that seem to go viral overnight, I think it's important to think about the sustainability of the sudden demand of the world for Ube.
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It is quite a sensitive crop to grow, so it is susceptible to climatic hazards.
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And the Philippines is a country that is highly exposed to extreme weather events.
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Filipino farmers have also started to express concern over meeting the global demand for ube.
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At the same time, I think there is a question of heritage.
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It's so easy for foreign restaurants and cafes to incorporate the purple colour in their drinks and desserts, label it ube at the end of the day, just to be able to hop on the trend.
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However, I think what we are missing here is that rare opportunity to introduce and share this unique Filipino cultural and historical heritage, that really deserves its time in the spotlight.
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So, Becca, there are mixed reactions to this.
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Who is benefiting most from the success of Ube?
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I think there's like a myriad of people that are capitalizing on it.
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Obviously, you're seeing Starbucks, here in the UK, Costa Coffee, introducing Ube products into their chains.
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But also like you'll see smaller Filipino cafes getting a surge of popularity because of it.
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I mean, here in London, I saw something about a woman that had traveled 200 miles to try a frozen ube iced latte from an independent Filipino cafe.
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So yeah, it's both larger companies and smaller Filipino run bakeries and cafes too, that are benefiting.
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And when something like this takes off or grows in popularity over a short period of time, sometimes, you know, you hear people talk about gentrification, and I've heard that being mentioned with Ube as well.
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What does this gentrification of Ube actually mean?
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I think it's when people feel that there's not an appreciation for where the product came from.
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You're seeing a big coffee chain marketing Ube, but are they making it clear that it's from the Philippines?
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And are people aware that it's a Filipino product that has such a rich history that's important to so many people?
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So people talk about gentrification, and I think that's a multifaceted point.
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It can be the fact that it's becoming more expensive than it would perhaps normally be in the Philippines.
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But it's also just to do with the fact that it's been divorced from its cultural context as well.
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So on the one hand, as you said, demand is going up.
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That means that prices are increasing, that production presumably has to increase to try and meet that demand. But I also read that it's quite problematic for some of the farmers that are growing it.
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And we're going to hear from Miguel now, who works for the Filipino Ube house.
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I feel like ube supply has always been short of the demand simply because Filipinos, you know, we love our desserts so we can never get enough of Ube in the first place.
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I would say the first time that I really noticed a big spike in demand was sometime around mid 2025.
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Now I'm getting inquiries from practically every continent of the world.
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So with the sudden spike in demand, I've started to see a decline in quality ube.
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If in the past I've had batches of Ube coming from different farms with about 60 to 70% purple tubers.
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Now I've seen farms that deliver even less than 10% purple.
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And so it really shows the quality over quantity issue.
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So as we heard with Miguel, there's issues with supply meeting demand.
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And that's something that's really hard for farmers to way up because this is a trend and trends do reach an end.
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So if farmers decide that they're going to really focus on producing Ube, and then, you know, people in America or Europe or wherever it is that they're buying this product, decide that they're over the trend, farmers are left with, you know, a surplus in ube and other products that exist might have been neglected.
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So it's a really hard decision for them.
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Social media really is driving these crazes, right?
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You know, green of matcha, the purple ube.
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What do you think might be the next food fad?
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Oh that's a really good point, actually.
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I think I saw something about like guava coming back in, pink guava.
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I do love a guava and of course, pink, it would fit right on my Instagram feed. Becca, thanks so much for coming in the studio.
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Thank you for having me.
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I'm going to have another sip of this, but before I go, I want to shout out some of the comments that you guys have been leaving us.
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So we did an episode about Indian Graduates struggling to find jobs.
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Nearly 40% of grads who were under 25 can't find work, and Chandan said that Indians are running after certificates and qualifications instead of learning the skills that the current industry requires.
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In fact, artificial intelligence is helping us do our work faster than ever before, and it is making individuals capable of performing high level jobs.
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So that's an interesting take.
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And Zille said that the same thing is happening in Pakistan, that young people are out of jobs.
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So does that mean that many of you, you know, listening to this, might be living at home for longer or are choosing to move abroad for work?
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I would love to hear from you.
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You can get in touch with us right here on YouTube.
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You can drop us a comment below.
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We're also on Instagram @bbcwhatintheworld so slide into our DMs. I'm Hannah, this is What in the World from the BBC World Service and I'll see you soon.
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MM.
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Why practice speaking with this video?
Engaging with the podcast episode "Ube: The purple food taking over your feed" from the BBC World Service provides an excellent opportunity to enhance your English speaking practice. The discussion revolves around cultural trends and food, making it relatable and engaging for learners interested in global topics. By listening and speaking along with the hosts, you can improve your fluency and get accustomed to various accents and conversational styles. Additionally, discussing the societal implications of food trends gives learners a chance to expand their vocabulary and express opinions, which are essential skills for the IELTS speaking practice.
Grammar & Expressions in Context
The speakers utilize several grammatical structures and expressions that are beneficial for English learners:
- Present Perfect Tense: "I have tried it." This tense is used to describe experiences or actions that have relevance to the present, often useful in conversational contexts.
- Conditional Sentences: "If we look at things like avocado on toast..." Conditional sentences help articulate hypothetical situations, allowing for a more nuanced conversation.
- Direct Speech: "My reaction is very protective." Incorporating direct speech enhances storytelling and helps learners convey emotions more effectively.
- Passive Voice: "It has been mentioned..." This structure helps to emphasize the action rather than the subject, which is useful for academic or formal discussions.
Common Pronunciation Traps
In this video, certain words and expressions may pose pronunciation challenges:
- Ube: This word, pronounced "oo-beh," is central to the discussion and essential for learners interested in Filipino culture.
- Condensed: The emphasis is on the second syllable (con-DENSED), which might be overlooked by non-native speakers.
- Halo Halo: This phrase, used to describe a popular Filipino dessert, is pronounced "ha-lo ha-lo," and mastering it can enrich your vocabulary in culinary contexts.
By focusing on these tricky pronunciations, learners can improve English pronunciation significantly, helping them sound more natural in conversation. Regularly practicing these words within the context of the podcast will facilitate smooth integration into your speech during shadow speak exercises.
What is the Shadowing Technique?
Shadowing is a science-backed language learning technique originally developed for professional interpreter training and popularized by polyglot Dr. Alexander Arguelles. The method is simple but powerful: you listen to native English audio and immediately repeat it out loud — like a shadow following the speaker with just a 1–2 second delay. Unlike passive listening or grammar drills, shadowing forces your brain and mouth muscles to simultaneously process and reproduce real speech patterns. Research shows it significantly improves pronunciation accuracy, intonation, rhythm, connected speech, listening comprehension, and speaking fluency — making it one of the most effective methods for IELTS Speaking preparation and real-world English communication.
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