New food formats off the menu as commissioning rates plunge, says Ampere

John Torode (left) and Gregg Wallace front the UK version of MasterChef

Greenlights for cookery- and food-related TV content dropped off significantly in the UK and US last year as the global commissioning downturn continues to bite, new statistics have revealed.

UK-based research firm Ampere Analysis said greenlights for culinary-themed shows were down 26% in the UK in 2023 compared with the previous year. The situation is only marginally less severe in the US, which suffered a sharp 21% decrease in the same genre.

Alice Thorpe, research manager at Ampere Analysis, said: “This is primarily attributable to the wider move towards cost-cutting, which we’ve seen from many of the major players in response to a challenging advertising market.”

Producers in the formats space had once hoped that last year’s dual writers and actors strikes in the US would create an uptick in orders for unscripted content. However, there is little evidence of that having happened, with risk-averse commissioners particularly reluctant to order new and original food shows. Instead, broadcasters are playing it safe by relying on tried and tested formats that audiences are already familiar with.

In the 12-month period to the end of Q1 2024, Ampere tracked over 20 new or returning seasons of MasterChef ordered globally – with new, first-run versions and spin-offs in Serbia, Poland, Quebec and Portugal, and returning seasons in some 11 countries.

The Bake Off brand was the second most commissioned format over the same period, though orders were limited to returning seasons of international versions of the format and its spin-offs.

“It really is the heritage brands that continue to be commissioned in volume and are perennially popular,” said Thorpe.

Despite the market challenges, data shows that the US and UK remained the biggest commissioners of food-related content globally in the first quarter of this year. Japan and Canada are tied in third place, while Germany and Italy are fourth and fifth, respectively.

Reality-based culinary content, encompassing traditional cooking shows and competition formats, dominates the genre in the vast majority of territories. The only exception to that rule is the UK, where 44% of gastronomy-themed shows commissioned in Q1 were documentaries.