The Evolution of Food Entertainment: From Cronuts to Content Creators

Tue Sep 30 2025 06:46:48 GMT+0300 (Eastern European Summer Time)

As traditional cooking shows dwindle in popularity, food influencers on platforms like YouTube thrive. Explore how the culinary landscape has shifted and what it means for our viewing habits.

Once dominated by iconic chefs on television, food entertainment has rapidly transformed with the rise of social media influencers. A notable shift away from conventional cooking shows is evident, with declining commissions for such programs and an exponential growth in online content creation. This article examines the factors driving this change and its implications for food culture.

The Evolution of Food Entertainment: From Cronuts to Content Creators

The food television landscape is undergoing a radical transformation as traditional cooking shows fade in popularity, giving way to a vibrant community of online food influencers. Once home to household names like Keith Floyd and Nigella Lawson, the TV cooking segment now faces an existential dilemma in the age of social media.

Back in the early '90s, cooking shows morphed into an essential part of daily television programming. This trend reached its peak in 2014, with the BBC airing a staggering 21 hours of cooking content over one week. Fast forward to today, however, and the number of new cooking shows has plummeted. Recent reports indicate that the commissioning of food programs has decreased by 44% in just a year.

What led to this significant shift? The rise of platforms like YouTube, TikTok, and Instagram has enabled content creators to produce cooking-related videos far more quickly and flexibly than traditional television networks. Many viewers are opting to follow food influencers, who can react to trends instantaneously and engage with audiences in a more personal manner. A telling example is Natalia Rudin, known as 'Natsnourishments,' whose simple bean recipe amassed one million views overnight, showcasing the potential for audiences to be enthralled by authentic, spontaneous content.

Food influencers thrive on popularity and engagement, often achieving numbers that once felt unattainable for conventional cooking shows. As of now, over 1.3 billion views have been logged on various food channels that cater to niche interests and cater to community feedback.

While traditional cooking shows once shaped culinary habits and trends across nations, it appears that the money and attention are now thinly distributed among the countless YouTube channels available. With the changing tides of consumer preference, the future of television-dominated food culture hangs in the balance.

Some television advocates, like Ed Sayer, argue that the essence of quality story-telling remains essential, irrespective of the platform. Ultimately, while television might be facing challenges, the need for engaging culinary content isn't disappearing; it's simply transitioning into new forms.