Relationship Between Food And Society Media Essay

Introduction

“Food is any substance containing nutrients, such as carbohydrates, proteins, and fats, that can be ingested by a living organism and metabolized into energy and body tissue.” (food- definition of food by free dictionary)It is one of the most important thing needed by human body to survive.It is one of the important basic needs of human.One cannot survive without having food.United Kingdom(UK) is a country with diverse culture.In UK we can find people from all around the world.So we can find the multicultural nature of food and drink over here.The eating and drinking habit of the people are influenced by various factors such as cultural, geographical and historical influences.As the time changes the eating and drinking habit of people also changes.The current trends affect the way people eat and drink.The trends in food and drink consumption may differ from place to place.Thus there is an integrating relationship between the food, society and culture.

Relationship between food and society

There are different determinants of basic eating habits.Some of them are biological, economical, physical, social etc.The biological determinants are hunger, desire to eat etc.People eat in order to satisfy their hunger and due to desire of eating food.Another determinant is physical needs.Physical needs are like education, cooking skills, availability of time to cook etc.If people know how to cook and have time to cook they eat the food.If they are well educated they eat the nutritious food and balanced diet.Similary another determinant is social needs such as cultural influences, influences of people living around etc.They eat according to the culture they belong to and also according to the people they live nearby.

Abraham Maslow brought forward a Maslow’s Hierarchy of needs which determines the physical needs,safety needs,social needs, self esteem and self actualisation.Maslow theory suggest that the basic need of human is food, water etc.After satisfying the basic needs it is human nature to want for more so they have the sense of security.So they want the safety needs to be fulfilled.In this way they move up in the hierarchy fulfilling one need after the other thus achieiving the maximum level of hierarchy i.e. self actualisation.

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In order to understand the complex relationship between the food and society it requires a multi-disciplinary approach.The eating and drinking habits of people depends upon the society.People usually tend to eat the food which they are familiar with.The culture is the main dominant of the way people eat.The food which can be eaten in one religion may get offended in the other.So we need to take care of the potential religious and spiritual connotations in order to prevent getting offended.We need to know more about the society where we live so as to maximise the offering we may provide to it.If we have the knowledge of the society then we can have improved customer service, effective menu planning, knowledge of the religious and spiritual connotations, fulfillment of customer requirements and expectations etc.Due to people from different backgrounds living in uk we can have diversity of culture.Therefore, we can take the advantage of what people eat during such festivities.

Current influences on societies eating and drinking habits

United Kingdom is made up of four nations i.e. England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland.As it is made up of four nations we can imagine how diverse is culture over here. There are many influences on the current eating and drinking habits in the society.Cultural influences can make difference in the consumption of the food and drink.Most people eating habits are inspired by the eating habits of the local people in that place.The eating and drinking habit of people in UK are influenced by various factors such as hectic lifestyle, climate, seasonal availability, age group, health issues, budget, advertisements and promotions of food and drinks through media, current market trends, cultural backgrounds,religious issues, awareness of health, influences of abroad, legislation etc.The current influences on food and drink in UK are mainly influenced by above mentioned factors.

Hectic lifestyle is the main factor which influences the eating and drinking habits of people in UK.People are mainly busy and do not have time to cook for them properly.Thats why they eat fast food or the ready to eat meals.Climate is also another important factor for the people living in UK.The climate over here is very cold during the winter.Snowfall takes place at the winter so climate is very cold.So people tend to eat more hot foods like soup, coffee etc.Seasonal availability is also another factor because all the foods are not available throughout the season like strawberries.People in Uk love to eat strawberries and it is available only for few months.It is also influenced by the advertisements and promotions done at the tv, radio, newspaper etc.Mainly the small children are more influenced by the advertisements at the media.Moreover, the cultural backgrounds and the religious issues also play an important role.We can find people from various culture and religious backgrounds.For e.g. Muslims they don’t eat pork and any items related to it.On the other hand Hindus they don’t eat beef.So there are big taboos over here.Budgetary constraints is also one of the important factor which influence the eating habits.We can find high income people, middle class people and lower level.So the money spend by the people on the food depends upon the class of people.

Geographical and historical influences on multi-cultural nature of food and drink

In UK we can find people from all around the world.So we can find multi cultural nature of food and drinking habits.There are geographical and historical influence on the multi cultural nature of food and drink. “Britain is an island country and the surrounding sea gives England a varied climate.The main influence on the climate of is our close proximity to the Atlantic Ocean, our northern latitude, and the warming of the waters around the land by the Gulf Stream (a warm current of the northern Atlantic Ocean).” (climate and temperature britain).Britain has very cold winter and mild summer.Therefore people in UK tend to eat more hot foods like soup and drink more coffees and teas.

“Britain has also a long historical background for the food and drink.”British cuisine has always been multicultural, a pot pourri of eclectic styles. In ancient times influenced by the Romans and in medieval times the French. When the Frankish Normans invaded, they brought with them the spices of the east: cinnamon, saffron, mace, nutmeg, pepper, ginger. Sugar came to England at that time, and was considered a spice- rare and expensive.” (British Food- British culture, customs and traditions).British cuisines started to take a new look after the 1980’s.British food are inspired by the French and the Romans.The east india company also brought some traditional indian cuisine which is mostly renowned as curry.Today we can find the different dishes such as chinese, indian, italian, greek , spanish etc which explains the multi cultural nature of food and drink in the UK.It represents the ethnic diversity which influences the way people eat or drink.The british food was not considered as good like this before 30 years ago.But now the modern british cuisine inspired by the european countries is considered one of the best cuisine in the world along with the best chefs and the renowned restaurants.

There are also different logistics regarding the food.People eat the food that is easily accessible or that is locally available to them.For e.g. people living in the coastal areas tend to eat more seafood whereas inland people eat more red meats.Those eating seafood will have the maximum consumption of white wine whereas the red meat goes with the red wine.The legislation of the country also restrict the production of certain food.The extreme climate is also one of the factor that determines the way people eat.In cold places people prefer to eat soups, coffee etc whereas in the hot countries they tend to drink cold drinks, cold coffee etc.Moreover different ethical considerations like whether to eat whale, elephant ,dolphin, dogs, cats etc or not is also one of the logistics.Similarly, alcohol may also be considered as a drug by some people.

Analysing menu of an organisation in association and relationship with food & drink

I would like to take menu of the’The café’ restaurant of Ibis hotel Heathrow.There are lot of guest coming from different countries to Ibis for stay.So, we can find guest from different cultural diversity.According to the Appendix 1 the menu of The café restaurant focus on the people from all cultural diversity.The restaurant is situated in the heart of london so we can find the people from different countries.Therefore, due to the multicultural diversity the menu is not focusing on a particular group.

There are different accompaniments of food and drink.Accompaniments are such type of food which are served together with the main dishes.There are various accompaniments given in the restaurant such as bread and butter,beef with horseradish sauce, roast lamb served with mint sauce, fish served with lemon and tartare sauce , steaks served with peppercorn or bearnaise sauce, Gammon served with apple sauce, , curry served with rice or nan bread, pasta served with grated cheese, desserts served with whipped cream or custard,cheese and biscuits etc.Usually these are the things which goes together with each other.One of the latest trend in UK for the food and drink combination is Beer and curry.The food trend in UK especially in london is changing since past few years due to the various cultural influences.

Not only the food there are different accompaniments for the drink as well.There are various type of drink which are taken with some other things like gin and tonic with slice of lemon, whisky with coke, white wine with lemonade(sprintzer), tonic water with lemon etc.These are the drinks that are served with the accompaniments.Some of the food is very popular among the people of London.

Influence of developing trends in food and drink consumption

UK food and drink consumption is changing since past few years.People are interested towards organic food and the genetically modified food.Genetically modified (GM) foods are foods derived from genetically modified organisms. “Genetically modified organisms have had specific changes introduced into their DNA by genetic engineering.”(wikipedia)People are being more conscious about what they eat.They are more attracted to the healthy food.Despite of their hectic lifestyle they try to eat the healthy foods.There are various trends in regard to food and drink consumption.The trends of organic foods, ready to eat meals, energy drinks, smoothies etc have increased recently.The food and meat grown at local level, wine and beer made locally,nutritionally balanced food, cuisines from the regional ethnic backgrounds, cocktails, mocktails, flavoured water ,branded food etc are the food which are mostly consumed by the people.Moreover, taste has also become a major choice for people to eat.They tend to eat the food which has good appearance and texture.

The organic food has become the choice for the people.They try to buy the food that is grown naturally without using any chemicals.Moreover, they also try to buy the branded food like Marks & Spencer, Waitrose etc.They are more influenced by the fruits and vegetables that are grown locally.Similarly they are also interested in newly cut and fresh meats.They have started taking more healthier options of food.Nutritious and the healthy food are their main priorities.Ready to eat meals is also one of the popular trend in UK.People have a busy schedule over here that’s why they are inclined to ready to eat meals.They just reheat it in a microwave for few minutes and have it.It saves their time and effort.But we cannot guarantee for the nutrition of such foods.Such meals are ready to make but cannot have all the nutrients needed by the body.So we need to pay attention towards our health as well.

Ethical issues

There are also various ethical issues in the food industry.For e.g killing of animals for the purpose of fulfilling the need of human, catching of fish that are very rare which can cause harm to the other sea creatures , making of a foie grass by feeding the geese forcefully, slaughtering of animals etc. (Bernard davis, 2008)The animals and other creatures are killed mercilessly in order to fulfill the basic eating habits of man.Thus, the ethical issues should be addressed carefully in order to have balance and harmony in the environment.

Conclusion

In UK we can find people from all over the world and variety of cuisines which represents the multi cultural nature of food and drink.There are various factors which affect the nature of food and drink in UK.They are cultural, religious, geographical, historical etc.The food which is eaten by people of one ethnic origin may be the taboos for other religion.They may get offended due to the food.There are many influences in the eating and driking habits of the people.Some of the influences are budget, availability of the food round the year, hectic lifestyle, health awareness, age groups etc.People are also adopting current trends in their eating and drinking habits such as organic foods, ready to eat meals, energy and sport drinks, smoothies etc.Mostly the new generation like to be trendy by adopting the new trends of the society.As the time is changing the eating and drinking habits of the people around the UK is also changing constantly.Thus, the expectations of having quality food and health awareness of the people has also increased significantly in past few years.

The café Menu

Soups :- Soup of the day £3.50

Starters:- Caesar salad £ 5.45

Potato skins with bacon and cheese £6.10

Garlic breaded mushrooms £4.95

Feta, olive and tomato salad £4.50

Marinated greek olives £5.00

Main course:- Chicken penne pasta £7.95

Chicken kebab thai noodle salad £8.50

Malaysian Beef Rendang £7.95

Chicken tikka Masala £8.50

Beef Burger £8.50

Beef fillet £13.95

Beer battered cod and chips £8.50

Spinach, button and squash risotto £7.00

Salmon, Tuna and red snapper £9.00

Dessert:- Chocolate fondant £4.50

Ice cream selection £3.50

Strawberry tart £4.95

Toffee apple sponge £4.00