How do food and culture go hand-in-hand?

 

🍴How do food and culture go hand-in-hand? 

 🥢Food is important as a means of bodily function, development and satiation of hunger. But why do you prefer pizza to oxtail stew? Or biryani to a quarter pounder with cheese? Or coffee to tea? Or pitted dates to s’mores? 

 🥣You cannot talk about dietary preferences without acknowledging their cultural impact. Remember: culture is a web of meanings with which you have spun. Cultural norms dictate acceptable thoughts and behaviors in society, and food is no different than language, nonverbal cues, religion, dress, art, etc. Remember that the other communication contexts play a major role in food growth, distribution and consumption: environmental, psychological, physical, temporal and social. AND lest we forget history: exploration, migration, colonialism, exploitation, transportation and commodification. 

 🥄I will be talking more this week about food and culture, and I am already getting hungry! 

Image description: Allison is holding up a fork and a pair of chopsticks.