The Global Politics of Food and Eating - Assignment Example

The Global Politics of Food and Eating Name: Course: Tutor: Institution: City and State: Date: PART ONE Concept One-The Omnivore’s Dilemma Omnivores can eat both plants and meat, which presents the assumption that one can eat anything edible. Despite the wide range of foods, man still faces the dilemma of what to consume and what to leave out (Pollan 2002 p.3). The consumerist society has triggered the obsession with over consumption of every available commodity hence the supermarkets and other market points stock wide varieties of foods to suit various tastes and preferences. However, in the recent times, people have become conscious of what constitutes their diet due to emergence of lifestyle related diseases and the increased awareness of the consequences of eating habits (Goodman & DuPuis 2002 p. 6). The media once again takes centre stage in dictating what the consumers pick off the supermarket racks. A large focus has also shifted to nutritionists for information on the foods eat and foods to avoid. The omnivore therefore exists within certain barriers and the aspect of freedom of choice faces extinction. Absence of a stable food culture accelerates the dilemma since the individuals begin defining their food culture from available dishes (Goodman & DuPuis 2002 p. 7). Multiculturalism is to blame for the dilution of culture globally since communities drop their indigenous delicacies and embrace foreign diets influenced by members of other communities. The industrial, organic, and hunter-gatherer food chains interact to sustain the ecology in which the principle of survival for the fittest applies (Pollan 2002 p.5). The emerging trend of embracing organic foods also points out an interesting perspective for investigation. The study of food chains reveals nature’s interruption by technology through major interruptions of the ecology and the operation of nature. Concept two- Transnational Food Taboos Food spurs controversy in terms of consumption and avoidance throughout the world. People originate from different cultural setups and therefore have different definitions of food and its acceptability. Within the community, the people believe their food is superior and expect others to fit into similar feeding habits. Food acts as a sense of identity for communities and a representation of their culture hence addressing people’s feeding habits appears as an address to their culture and way of life. The aspect of food taboos exists due to external influence of people who judge the community’s cuisine and makes judgment from their previous cuisineexperiences. Comparison between different cultures and their cuisine triggers the aspect of food avoidance and food taboos (Lien 2001 p.182). Classification of food for avoidance depends on concepts obtained through knowledge, travel, migration, and cross-cultural interaction with members of other communities. It offers ideas on what people should do and what they should avoid through painting an image of an ideal world. The activists of food avoidance present the aspect of animal oppression through slaughtering as a reason to avoid consuming meat. Definition of food taboos also emerges from the use of certain ideal societies as a benchmark to dictate what other communities should consume and avoid. Transnational interaction therefore introduces the aspect of food taboos through premeditated actions of particular food avoidance. Concept three- Society of the Appetite This article focuses on the image-dominated culture where the persona distracts the focus from the person. It focuses on how the media portrays food through creation of a spectacle about food preparation and consumption (Hansen 2008 p.50). The obsession with watching food preparation on the screen distracts people from the actual preparation and consumption of real food. The message makes it difficult for the audience to distinguish between wants and needs while the media dictates what people should consume, when and where. The celebrity appears as a representation of the ideal person that people should emulate. The persona takes preference of the person and the society obsesses on attaining the perfect image portrayed on the screen. In reality, the consumer is the lifeblood of a business since he dictates what product to produce and how but the food industry has turned its focus on the celebrity chef. The fuss over these celebrities has overshadowed the attention on the actual consumers who take a back seat in this spectacle. Fame of the chefs emerges from the presentation of a perfect image to the public rather than the cooking skills of individual chefs (Hansen 2008 p.51). The advertisements in the food industry revolve around the chef who acts as the brand for the food and restaurants. The media also connects the celebrity lifestyle to food consumption hence paints a picture that the celebrities should adhere. The adoration of celebrities by the ordinary people drives the consumers into adopting similar consumption behaviors in an attempt to fit into the perfect image. Media messages therefore dictate the appetite of the audience while ignoring the fact that the image portrayed does not represent reality but rather a representation of an ideal world. Concept Four - The Politics of Palestinian Olive Oil This study highlights the effects of political and economic conditions on the on the daily lives of citizens a demonstrated in Palestine. It features olive oil, a staple food for the community, as a representation of consumer products (Meneley 2011 p.280). The community faces blood, sweat, and tears in the planting and harvesting of this commodity, which illustrates the struggle of citizens in unfavorable political and economic conditions. Unstable political and economic environment derail the individual economic goals through the posing obstacles for the production process. Palestinians face obstacles in the picking of olives from the fields due to the invasion of its territory by Israelis. The struggle highlights the issues of land and legitimacy in the nation emerging from the illegal settlement of Israeli on agricultural land of the Palestine. Olive oil production in Palestine highlights the struggle of the producers as well as the emotions attached to the commodity at the end of the supply chain. This product attracts the world’s attention to the political issues revolving the Israeli illegal occupation of Palestine (Meneley 2011 p.286). Olive oil acts as a solidarity symbol for the community against the unfair treatment due to the inaccessibility of their agricultural land. The commodity acts as a representation of the national heritage through the preservation of the traditions and pride of the Palestine nationals. It also tells the story of the Palestinian farmers through portraying of their story of struggle in obtaining a commodity consumed by international consumers. The story of the political and economic struggle faced by Palestine citizens therefore lives through the production and supply of olive oil to end consumers. Concept Five- Real Belizean Food Belize is a small country affected by external influence on culture through numerous flows of tourists into the country as well as cross-cultural interactions. Due to these interactions with people from other countries particularly the United States, the country gradually adopted foreign cultural practices. The country began constructing its national symbols recently after experiencing intensive interaction with foreigners who visit the country as well as settle in the area (Wilk 1999 p.382). The situation is a perfect reflection of erosion of culture and traditions due to transnational interactions. The cuisine of the Belize community tells it all since it includes very minimal aspects of the community’s traditions. Available traditional dishes have a considerable effect of the western culture in terms of their preparation. The media and technology is to blame for the foreign influence on the community through introduction of foreign practices and perspectives. Maintenance of the traditional culture in the country is a practice of the marginalized population of the community. Culture therefore loses its position as a source of influence and power and instead power emerges from education and accumulation of economic capital. This heritage adopted by Belize establishes a common ground for the transnational members of the society. The language of education and economy is an international language that suits the culture with different fused cultures. PART TWO The original cultures have begun fading due to modernization as well as state interferences through regulations. The post-Pausterians believe in the presence of microbes that enhance the quality of life through fighting some preventable diseases. They state that not all bugs cause harm to human life hence they should not all face elimination and suspicion. They believe in consumption of raw milk cheese that contains helpful microbial organisms that prevent colds among other illnesses caused by germs (Paxton 2008 p.15). The modern world focuses its attention on fighting germs through avoiding any preventable contact with potential causes. Mere handshakes presumably result in the transmission of germs from one person to another hence the campaign on hand sanitization. The post-Pausterians on the other hand shift their focus on embracing these germs since they are part of life. The campaign on naked handshakes and the avoidance of antibiotics forms part of their perspective towards these organisms. The community insists on the consumption of raw milk cheese, which faces controversy due to the antagonistic views. The United States places safety regulations on the cheese producers to avoid entry of contaminated foods into the market. The authorities view the industry as a potential health hazard in need of heavy surveillance. Regulations imposed on the industry fight the traditional beliefs and practices of the post-Pausterians through the assumption of their practices as unsafe and unhealthy. Debates surrounding the practices cover the dilemma between ensuring a healthy environment for the community while protecting their freedom of choice. Modernization and industrialization has had various positive results and its share of negativity. Many countries have ignored the agriculture industry to focus on the manufacturing industry, which has resulted in the food crisis experienced in recent times. International trade has offered the world a common market place for trading various commodities including agricultural commodities. While chasing prosperity, countries forget the aspect of sustainability through food production. Many nations invest in agro exports while ignoring the consumption needs of the citizens (Rosset 2008 p.461). The high domestic demand and low supply of food forces an upward movement of the prices making food expensive for the locals. Presence of trade agreements between countries ignores the unique conditions of the countries. Food sovereignty campaign seeks to allow countries to design food systems appropriate for their economy to prevent food crisis and dumping that could kill the local industries. This would correct the situation of countries with insufficient food reserved to satisfy local demand and rely entirely on imports (Rosset 2008 p.462). Changing food patterns due to modernized societies through high preference for meat commodities has discouraged crop growing since animal rearing produces returns that are more profitable. Modernization has also influenced the decline in the agricultural industry through decrease in land resources. The emerging focus on agro fuel crops causes the decrease in availability of land for food crop growing and cattle rearing hence the reduction in food supply and the skyrocketing prices. The age of enlightenment has facilitated the sexual expression of people in the society. Food has become a subject marred with sexual politics with certain foods believed to represent certain sexual perspectives. Vegans oppose the oppression of animals through subjection to torture in the process of obtaining meat (Adams 2010 p.308). The society associates vegans to the less superior sex due to their identification with the victims, in this case the animals. The image portrayed in the oppression of animals paints the exact situation of woman in the society. Society has therefore being portraying animal oppression as a feminist issue and connected veganism to feminism. Meat eating on the other hand relates to aspects of masculinity and a source of identity for the men in the western societies. Male activities also relate to meat eating such as barbecues while women consume less meat and aim to substitute it for vegetarian meals. Women prepare the meals while the men consume it as portrayed in the numerous recipes in the media. The passive nature of veganism therefore suits women and their feminist agenda of fighting for equality of the sexes. Modern societies generally embrace meat eating through language and cultural representation. The practice becomes a ritual packed with symbolism of the acceptance of the violence associated with meat preparation. Language used by society to describe the violent transformation of an animal to food represents the complacency in dealing with women woes (Adams 2010 p.310). The feminization of animal products such as eggs and other dairy products produced through the abuse of female animal bodies proves the theory of sexual animal politics. The feminization of animals and humanization of animals causes societal imbalances through gender bias. Therefore, food takes center stage in the gender and sexual politics portraying the crucial role of food to the contemporary world. References Adams C. J. 2010. ‘Why Feminist-Vegan Now?’ Feminism & Psychology, vol. 20, no.3 pp.302–317. Goodman D. and DuPuis E., 2002.Knowing food and growing food: Beyond the production- consumption. Sociologia Ruralis. Vol 42, no1 Pp. 5-25 Hansen S. 2008, ‘Society Of The Appetite: Celebrity Chefs Deliver Consumers’, Food, Culture & Society, vol. 11, no. 1, Pp. 50-65. Lien M. E. 2001. Dogs, Whales and Kangaroos: Transnational Activism and Food Taboos. London. Routledge. Meneley A. 2011. ‘Blood, Sweat, and Tears in a Bottle of Palestinian Extra-Virgin Olive Oil’, Food Culture Society, Vol 14, no. 2. Pp. 275-288. Paxton H. 2008. ‘Post-Pausterian Cultures: The Microbiopolitics Of Raw Cheese In The United States’, Cultural Anthropology, Vol. 23, no. 1, Pp. 15–47. Pollan M. 2002. The Omnivore’s Dilemma: A Natural History Of Four Meals. London Routledge. Rosset P. 2008. ‘Food Sovereignty and the Contemporary Food Crisis’, Society for International Development, vol. 51, no. 4, pp.460–463. Wilk R. 1999. ‘The Real Belizean Food: Building Local Identity In The Transnational Caribbean’. Food and Culture, Pp. 379-391. Read More