You Are What You Eat? Class, Gender and Consumption in Jamie Oliver's “Ministry Of Food”

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CHAPTER 2: LITERATURE REVIEW1

We Are How We Eat1

Cultures of Food1

Dietary Consideration of Food Culture3

Factors Influencing What People Eat In a Culture3

Seasonal Availability4

Neighbourhood Availability4

Culturally Acceptable Foods4

Cooking, Consumption and Gender5

Healthier Diet Men or Women5

Gender Based Eating Patterns and Health Consciousness6

Gender Based Cooking Patterns6

Gender Based Consumption - Dieting Status6

Fat Intake Male or Female7

Cooking, Consumption and Class7

Consumption Reflect Social Class & Status8

Weber and Status Groups Consumption Patterns8

Class Difference and Food Consumption Patterns9

Upper Class Consumption Pattern9

Middle Class Consumption Pattern9

Lower Class Consumption Pattern10

Jamie Oliver & the “Ministry of Food”10

Ministry of Food11

More Cooking at Home11

Fresh cooked Meal for Kids at School12

A National Movement for Change12

REFERENCES13

CHAPTER 2: LITERATURE REVIEW

We Are How We Eat

For the act of survival eating is essential. A system is usually provided by nourished and developed societies for its citizens to choose their food. The food consumption choices of human beings can have impacts on communities through social equity, culture, economics, politics, public nutrition, personal health, class, identity and gender. All these elements are significant parts of food system. Boswell et.al (2004) illustrated food system as 'an enormously complex collection of processes, people and places that aggregate, manage to move food from beginning to its final resting place (p.102). These systems involve the processing, production, distribution and consumption of food. The consumer of food plays an integral indirect and direct role in the development of their community food systems. Furst et.al (1996) further maps out the elements that drive an individual food choice and consumption (p.26). According to the study conducted by Furst et.al (1996), an individual go through a life course and the food that they consume reflect their social and personal roles, physical and cultural environment to which they exhibit (p.26). The life course of an individual influences their personal factors, ideas, social framework and resources. Furst et.al (1996) further stated that these life courses are so salient among individual systems of health needs, financial resources, surrounding relationships, and time commitments that food choices are individualized (p.26).

Cultures of Food

Food is central to our lives. The consumption behaviour of food of human is stimulus to several internal and external determinants playing an important role in fluxing an individual consumption. The most significant internal factors that stimulate an individual consumption to food are attitudes, self-efficiency, knowledge, beliefs, emotions, values, motivation and interest (Musaiger, 1993, p.1). The external factors affecting the consumption decisions of an individual are culture, food pricing, class, gender, food availability, role models, media and advertising (Curry & Jaffe 1998; Holli et al. 2009). Thus, food is any substance used to acquire energy and build tissues.

Despite the increase availability of food in our society there is a disparity among the people regarding food. What is considered food by one culture may not be considered consumable by another. Culture is a set of customary traits, beliefs and attitudes of a particular group. The culture can be based on age group, social group, gender, ethnicity and religious background (Cosmin, 2012, ...