I am a senior Lecturer in International Relations and Politics at Kingston University. As a former chef, I am particularly interested in the sociological, political and international relations dimensions of food. I explore these through four main research areas: the relationship between food, national identity/nationalism and globalisation; food in the context of settler colonialism; British food policy post-Brexit; and food (in)security in the UK.
Building and expanding on the first edition, the second edition of Food, National Identity and Na... more Building and expanding on the first edition, the second edition of Food, National Identity and Nationalism continues to explore a much-neglected area study: the relationship between food and nationalism. With a preface written by Michaela DeSoucey and using a wide range of case studies, it demonstrates that food and nationalism is an important area to study, and that the food-nationalism axis provides a useful prism through which to explore and analyse the world around us, from the everyday to the global, and the ways in which it affects us. The second edition includes a number of new case studies, including the demise and resurrection of pie as a ‘national dish’ in post-Brexit Britain; the use of netnography; the role of diasporas in maintaining and reinventing national food; the gastrodiplomatic potential of the New Nordic Cuisine; the potential of veganism to transcend nationalism; and the relationship between gastronationalism and populism.
This volume offers a comparative survey and analysis of diverse settler colonial experiences in ... more This volume offers a comparative survey and analysis of diverse settler colonial experiences in relation to food, food culture and foodways - how the latter are constructed, maintained, revolutionised and, in some cases, dissolved. What do settler colonial foodways and food cultures look like? Are they based on an imagined colonial heritage, do they embrace indigenous repertoires or invent new hybridised foodscapes? What are the socio-economic and political dynamics of these cultural transformations? In particular, this volume focuses on three key issues: the evolution of settler colonial identities and states; their relations vis-à-vis indigenous populations; and settlers’ self-indigenisation – the process through which settlers transform themselves into the native population, at least in their own eyes. These three key issues are crucial in understanding the rise of settler colonial identities and states, and their interaction with the indigenous populations that inhabit them. The work will be of interest to students and scholars of food studies, settler and post-colonial studies, sociologists, anthropologists and political scientists. Table of contents (12 chapters) Introduction Alejandro Colás, Daniel Monterescu, Ronald Ranta Pages 1-20 Part I. Beginnings: Hybrid Food Cultures and Foodways Spanish Settlers and Andean Food Systems Lisa Markowitz Pages 23-46 What Belongs in the “Federal Diet”? Depictions of a National Cuisine in the Early American Republic Peter Mabli Pages 47-63 The Taste of Colonialism? Changing Norms of Rice Production and Consumption in Modern Taiwan Yujen Chen Pages 65-84 ‘Like the Papacy of Mexican Cuisine’: Mayoras and Traditional Foods in Contemporary Mexico Claudia Prieto-Piastro, Alejandro Colás Pages 85-106 Part II. From Erasure to Decolonisation Unsettling the History of Macadamia Nuts in Northern New South Wales Adele Wessell Adele Wessell Pages 109-126 Definitions of Hawaiian Food: Evidence of Settler Colonialism in Selected Cookbooks from the Hawaiian Islands (1896–2021) Laura Kitchings Pages 127-146 Decolonising Israeli Food? Between Culinary Appropriation and Recognition in Israel/Palestine Ronald Ranta, Daniel Monterescu Pages 147-171 ‘Uneasy Lies the Head That Wears the Crown’: Lamb or Kangaroo, Which Should Reign Supreme? The Implications of Heroising a Settler Colonial Food Icon as National Identity Jackie Newling Pages 173-199 Part III. After Decolonisation? “A Manly Amount of Wreckage”: South African Food Culture and Settler Belonging in Ivan Vladislavić’s Double Negative Nitzan Tal Pages 203-220 Sustaining the Memory of Colonial Algeria Through Food Amy L. Hubbell, Jorien van Beukering Pages 221-245 The Predicaments of Settler Gastrocolonialism Lorenzo Veracini Pages 247-259 https://link.springer.com/book/10.1007/978-3-030-96268-5#toc
More often than not, what is termed as Israeli food, by Jewish-Israelis and foreign food writers,... more More often than not, what is termed as Israeli food, by Jewish-Israelis and foreign food writers, is street food, such as falafel, sabih and anything in pita bread. But, does Israeli food exist? In this chapter, we argue that, starting with the Zionist establishment, then, after the establishment of the state, the Israeli government, tried to impose a new hegemonic food culture that rejected Jewish-diaspora food, and was grounded in modern concepts of nutrition, inspired by European food cultures, but based on local ingredients. in this new food culture, the differences between the various immigrant communities were expected to be less visible, and Arab-Palestinians invisible, at least on the plate. However, as we demonstrate through our analysis of cookbooks, culinary identities are hard to impose from the top-down. Israeli food history illustrates how attempts to impose from the top-down. Israeli food history illustrates how attempts to impose national food policies were negotiated and reinterpreted by those who were affected by them.
What do deep fried mars bars, cod, and Bulgarian yogurt have in common? Each have become symbolic... more What do deep fried mars bars, cod, and Bulgarian yogurt have in common? Each have become symbolic foods with specific connotations, located to a very specific place and country.
This book explores the role of food in society as a means of interrogating the concept of the nation-state and its sub-units, and reveals how the nation-state in its various disguises has been and is changing in response to accelerated globalisation. The chapters investigate various stages of national food: its birth, emergence, and decline, and why sometimes no national food emerges. By collecting and analysing a wide range of case studies (including Portugal, Mexico, Slovenia, the USA, Ghana, Bulgaria, Scotland, Catalonia, Palestine, Costa Rica, Chile, Canada, Ecuador, and Israel) the book illustrates ways in which various social forces work together to shape social and political realities concerning food.
The contributors, hailing from anthropology, history, sociology and political science, investigate the significance of specific food cultures, cuisines, dishes, and ingredients, and their association with national identity. In so doing, it becomes clearer how these two things interact, and demonstrates the scope and direction of the current study of food and nationalism.
This book provides a detailed historical and political analysis of Israel's policy decision-makin... more This book provides a detailed historical and political analysis of Israel's policy decision-making process towards the Occupied Territories. The book argues that Israel did not have a strategic policy towards the Occupied Territories and instead engaged in non-decision making.
This book examines the role played by Arab-Palestinian culture and people in the construction and... more This book examines the role played by Arab-Palestinian culture and people in the construction and reproduction of Israeli national identity and culture, showing that it is impossible to understand modern Israeli national identity and culture without taking into account its crucial encounter and dialectical relationship with the Arab-Palestinian indigenous 'Other'. Based on extensive and original primary sources, including archival research, cookbooks and a variety of cultural products – from songs to dance steps – From the Arab Other to the Israeli Self sheds light on an important cultural and ideational diffusion that has occurred between the Zionist settlers – and later the Jewish-Israeli population – and the indigenous Arab-Palestinian people in Historical Palestine. By examining Israeli food culture, national symbols, the Modern Hebrew language spoken in Israel, and culture, the authors trace the journey of Israeli national identity and culture, in which Arab-Palestinian culture has been imitated, adapted and celebrated, but strikingly also rejected, forgotten and denied. From the Arab Other to the Israeli Self provides a pathbreaking, probing and critical look into the processes of mobilization and articulation of elements of Palestinian culture in the construction of Israeli identity. This is an accessible, yet insightful and thought-provoking contribution to an under-researched area that I unreservedly recommend to anyone who wants to understand the complexity of identity politics in this contested land.
Levels of food insecurity (FI) and the need for food support have increased dramatically since th... more Levels of food insecurity (FI) and the need for food support have increased dramatically since the COVID-19 pandemic and the costof-living crisis. These crises also enabled substantial innovation in food support provision, including a move away from more traditional food bank models toward social supermarkets (SSM). These are characterized as not-for-profit social enterprises that sell mostly food, at low or symbolic prices to those living near or in poverty. In this article we provide a timely empirical account of SSMs and the experiences and perspectives of their members, focusing on three key themes: access, dignity, and choice. We use a mixed-methods approach based on questionnaires (n = 111) and interviews (n = 25) with SSMs members, engaging with local priorities and perspectives in the active co-creation of the research. Our findings demonstrate that SSM's provision is more inclusive and mindful of the diversity and agency of their members, doing away with preconceived ideas of food support recipients as passive citizens. While not a panacea, we argue that SSMs offer an alternative model for providing food support and one that could be replicated broadly or used side-by-side with food banks.
Background: The Covid-19 pandemic has increased the need for food support but simultaneously enab... more Background: The Covid-19 pandemic has increased the need for food support but simultaneously enabled substantial innovation in food support provision, including the evolution of social supermarkets (SSM). These allow consumers to choose from a range of low-cost products, minimise stigma and reduce food waste. Data from members of two Sussex SSM were gathered for their perspectives and experiences, as well as potential nutritional implications of the SSM. Methods: Questionnaires administered face-to-face during site visits and optional telephone interviews were used. Data were collected during three site visits; 111 participants completed questionnaires, and an additional 25 detailed interviews with members of the SSM were completed. All data were gathered between December 2021 and May 2022. Results: Overall, the SSMs were valued by their members. Social, economic and nutritional benefits were identified. SSM increased consumer choice and reduced stigma. Most members visited regularly, using SSM to supplement other food purchases. They valued the opportunity to choose their own foods and opportunities to socialise, in addition to the range of food and household items offered. The majority agreed that healthy eating was important but time and cost were barriers especially for younger members. SSM introduced members to novel foods and dishes, potentially diversifying dietary intakes. Challenges included restrictions on the amounts of food available, depending on the timing of visits. This was a greater challenge for those more reliant on SSM for household needs. Conclusions: SSM represent an innovative and less stigmatising model of food support. Greater variety of food offered suggests their potential to diversify and improve dietary intakes. Challenges include ensuring stability of food supply and reducing stigma further.
PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to examine how food aid providers in Sussex and Southwest Lon... more PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to examine how food aid providers in Sussex and Southwest London responded and managed during the pandemic.Design/methodology/approachThe methodological approach consists of three inter-related layers. A qualitative description research approach based on naturalistic inquiry, supplemented by site visits and personal observations was used.FindingsThe pandemic catalysed dramatic, often positive, changes to the provision of food aid, with a move away from the traditional food bank model. It brought about increased coordination and oversight, as well as the upscaling of capabilities, infrastructure and provisions.Originality/valueThe paper contributes to the literature on food aid in the UK It provides evidence for how providers are transforming the sector for the better and potentially helping to deal with the cost-of-living crisis.
Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to examine how food aid providers in Sussex and Southwest ... more Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to examine how food aid providers in Sussex and Southwest London responded and managed during the pandemic. Design/methodology/approach – The methodological approach consists of three inter-related layers. A qualitative description research approach based on naturalistic inquiry, supplemented by site visits and personal observations was used. Findings – The pandemic catalysed dramatic, often positive, changes to the provision of food aid, with a move away from the traditional food bank model. It brought about increased coordination and oversight, as well as the upscaling of capabilities, infrastructure and provisions. Originality/value – The paper contributes to the literature on food aid in the UK It provides evidence for how providers are transforming the sector for the better and potentially helping to deal with the cost-of-living crisis. Keywords Food aid, Food insecurity, Food waste, Surplus food, Food bank, COVID-19 pandemic, Poverty Paper type Research paper
As the current volume demonstrates, the issue of food and nationalism/national identity is more o... more As the current volume demonstrates, the issue of food and nationalism/national identity is more often than not approached from banal or everyday nationalism angles. To repeat some of our arguments in the volume, this is because the quotidian nature of food and eating lends itself well to the investigation of nationalism in the private sphere, the kind of investigation that has become more mainstream recently in the study of nationalism. However, an investigation of food and nationalism is not complete if it ignores the relatively well-studied, official or public side, since nationalism works both in the public and in the private spheres. The current and following chapters will turn their attention to ‘food and nationalism’ in a more conventional setting in which the investigative focus is on what the nation-state does. In other words, Chapters 4 and 5 examine ‘food and nationalism’ in the context in which the nation-state is seen as the major actor of nationalism, often as the main nation-builder. The current chapter concentrates on the internal aspect of the nation-state’s involvement with nation-building, while Chapter 5 considers the external dimension.
tourifIf you have any idea for a monograph or an edited volume that investigates food and identit... more tourifIf you have any idea for a monograph or an edited volume that investigates food and identity in our globalising world contact the series editors a.ichijo@kingston.ac.uk and ronald.ranta@kingtson.ac.uk or Sharla Plant sharla.plant@palgrave.com, Publisher, Palgrave Macmillan for more details. ABOUT THE SERIES From 'food security' and 'food wars' to 'food banks' and 'food waste', it is evident that food plays a significant role in our daily lives and our globalising world. It also plays an important part in how we perceive ourselves and others and how we relate to and experience global issues, such as the Covid-19 pandemic, the rise of populism, climate change, and various international conflict. The ambition of the 'Food and identity in a Globalising World' series is to present inter-and trans-disciplinary studies of food and identity as a way of better understanding the world we live in. The series encourages new, innovative and critical thinking with regard to food and identity and aims to include research and researchers from a wide geographical remit. It promotes a diverse and inclusive approach, bringing together various disciplines such as anthropology, sociology, politics, geography, gender studies, media, and tourism, and as such aims to serve as a valuable resource for those interested in the field, including researchers, practitioners, and students at all levels.
Focusing on food (in)security, this paper argues that the Covid-19 pandemic has shed light on wha... more Focusing on food (in)security, this paper argues that the Covid-19 pandemic has shed light on what has been so far neglected in the ongoing Brexit discussions. The current pandemic has produced startling images of empty supermarket shelves, shortages of farm workers, increased use of food banks and heightened concern over the health of those at the lower end of the socioeconomic scale. We argue that food insecurity was not created by the current pandemic but is a serious underlying issue in the UK, which has not been adequately considered in discussions about Brexit. In other words, the pandemic has simply highlighted the risk that Brexit will worsen food insecurity and the health of those already disadvantaged. We argue that the pandemic provides an opportunity for UK policy makers to consider the impact of food trade deals on food insecurity, one which we urge them to take.
This article focusses on the future of food in the UK in the context of Brexit. It examines the c... more This article focusses on the future of food in the UK in the context of Brexit. It examines the claims and promises made by Brexiteers before the referendum and juxtaposes these with the approach pursued by the Conservative‐led government since. The article argues that there is a clear dissonance between the two. This dissonance is the result of two important factors. First, the government is stuck in a non‐decision‐making mode, making it unable to pursue clear policies. Second, the food claims and promises made by Brexiteers are in opposition to what the vast majority of the public, food experts, farmers and food businesses want. Through exploring these two factors, and the Brexiteers’ claims and promises, the article explains what leaving the EU might mean for the future of food in the UK.
Based on interviews and surveys of Bulgarians living in the UK, the article explores the changing... more Based on interviews and surveys of Bulgarians living in the UK, the article explores the changing nature of Bulgarian foodways in the UK. Using banitsa, a 'traditional' Bulgarian breakfast dish, as the starting point for the research, the article examines the relationship Bulgarians in the UK have with their host and home communities as well as with their national identity and sense of belonging and the effects these have on their fodways and food consumption. The main claim the article makes is that the context of migration and of being a migrant engenders a deliberate attempt to foster and maintain an identity that is most often expressed in national terms, and most immediately performed in the everyday through food. Migrant belonging changes in such a way that the everyday becomes a means of identity construction and expression. Attitudes towards food - the making and serving of banitsa - illustrate this change.
Building and expanding on the first edition, the second edition of Food, National Identity and Na... more Building and expanding on the first edition, the second edition of Food, National Identity and Nationalism continues to explore a much-neglected area study: the relationship between food and nationalism. With a preface written by Michaela DeSoucey and using a wide range of case studies, it demonstrates that food and nationalism is an important area to study, and that the food-nationalism axis provides a useful prism through which to explore and analyse the world around us, from the everyday to the global, and the ways in which it affects us. The second edition includes a number of new case studies, including the demise and resurrection of pie as a ‘national dish’ in post-Brexit Britain; the use of netnography; the role of diasporas in maintaining and reinventing national food; the gastrodiplomatic potential of the New Nordic Cuisine; the potential of veganism to transcend nationalism; and the relationship between gastronationalism and populism.
This volume offers a comparative survey and analysis of diverse settler colonial experiences in ... more This volume offers a comparative survey and analysis of diverse settler colonial experiences in relation to food, food culture and foodways - how the latter are constructed, maintained, revolutionised and, in some cases, dissolved. What do settler colonial foodways and food cultures look like? Are they based on an imagined colonial heritage, do they embrace indigenous repertoires or invent new hybridised foodscapes? What are the socio-economic and political dynamics of these cultural transformations? In particular, this volume focuses on three key issues: the evolution of settler colonial identities and states; their relations vis-à-vis indigenous populations; and settlers’ self-indigenisation – the process through which settlers transform themselves into the native population, at least in their own eyes. These three key issues are crucial in understanding the rise of settler colonial identities and states, and their interaction with the indigenous populations that inhabit them. The work will be of interest to students and scholars of food studies, settler and post-colonial studies, sociologists, anthropologists and political scientists. Table of contents (12 chapters) Introduction Alejandro Colás, Daniel Monterescu, Ronald Ranta Pages 1-20 Part I. Beginnings: Hybrid Food Cultures and Foodways Spanish Settlers and Andean Food Systems Lisa Markowitz Pages 23-46 What Belongs in the “Federal Diet”? Depictions of a National Cuisine in the Early American Republic Peter Mabli Pages 47-63 The Taste of Colonialism? Changing Norms of Rice Production and Consumption in Modern Taiwan Yujen Chen Pages 65-84 ‘Like the Papacy of Mexican Cuisine’: Mayoras and Traditional Foods in Contemporary Mexico Claudia Prieto-Piastro, Alejandro Colás Pages 85-106 Part II. From Erasure to Decolonisation Unsettling the History of Macadamia Nuts in Northern New South Wales Adele Wessell Adele Wessell Pages 109-126 Definitions of Hawaiian Food: Evidence of Settler Colonialism in Selected Cookbooks from the Hawaiian Islands (1896–2021) Laura Kitchings Pages 127-146 Decolonising Israeli Food? Between Culinary Appropriation and Recognition in Israel/Palestine Ronald Ranta, Daniel Monterescu Pages 147-171 ‘Uneasy Lies the Head That Wears the Crown’: Lamb or Kangaroo, Which Should Reign Supreme? The Implications of Heroising a Settler Colonial Food Icon as National Identity Jackie Newling Pages 173-199 Part III. After Decolonisation? “A Manly Amount of Wreckage”: South African Food Culture and Settler Belonging in Ivan Vladislavić’s Double Negative Nitzan Tal Pages 203-220 Sustaining the Memory of Colonial Algeria Through Food Amy L. Hubbell, Jorien van Beukering Pages 221-245 The Predicaments of Settler Gastrocolonialism Lorenzo Veracini Pages 247-259 https://link.springer.com/book/10.1007/978-3-030-96268-5#toc
More often than not, what is termed as Israeli food, by Jewish-Israelis and foreign food writers,... more More often than not, what is termed as Israeli food, by Jewish-Israelis and foreign food writers, is street food, such as falafel, sabih and anything in pita bread. But, does Israeli food exist? In this chapter, we argue that, starting with the Zionist establishment, then, after the establishment of the state, the Israeli government, tried to impose a new hegemonic food culture that rejected Jewish-diaspora food, and was grounded in modern concepts of nutrition, inspired by European food cultures, but based on local ingredients. in this new food culture, the differences between the various immigrant communities were expected to be less visible, and Arab-Palestinians invisible, at least on the plate. However, as we demonstrate through our analysis of cookbooks, culinary identities are hard to impose from the top-down. Israeli food history illustrates how attempts to impose from the top-down. Israeli food history illustrates how attempts to impose national food policies were negotiated and reinterpreted by those who were affected by them.
What do deep fried mars bars, cod, and Bulgarian yogurt have in common? Each have become symbolic... more What do deep fried mars bars, cod, and Bulgarian yogurt have in common? Each have become symbolic foods with specific connotations, located to a very specific place and country.
This book explores the role of food in society as a means of interrogating the concept of the nation-state and its sub-units, and reveals how the nation-state in its various disguises has been and is changing in response to accelerated globalisation. The chapters investigate various stages of national food: its birth, emergence, and decline, and why sometimes no national food emerges. By collecting and analysing a wide range of case studies (including Portugal, Mexico, Slovenia, the USA, Ghana, Bulgaria, Scotland, Catalonia, Palestine, Costa Rica, Chile, Canada, Ecuador, and Israel) the book illustrates ways in which various social forces work together to shape social and political realities concerning food.
The contributors, hailing from anthropology, history, sociology and political science, investigate the significance of specific food cultures, cuisines, dishes, and ingredients, and their association with national identity. In so doing, it becomes clearer how these two things interact, and demonstrates the scope and direction of the current study of food and nationalism.
This book provides a detailed historical and political analysis of Israel's policy decision-makin... more This book provides a detailed historical and political analysis of Israel's policy decision-making process towards the Occupied Territories. The book argues that Israel did not have a strategic policy towards the Occupied Territories and instead engaged in non-decision making.
This book examines the role played by Arab-Palestinian culture and people in the construction and... more This book examines the role played by Arab-Palestinian culture and people in the construction and reproduction of Israeli national identity and culture, showing that it is impossible to understand modern Israeli national identity and culture without taking into account its crucial encounter and dialectical relationship with the Arab-Palestinian indigenous 'Other'. Based on extensive and original primary sources, including archival research, cookbooks and a variety of cultural products – from songs to dance steps – From the Arab Other to the Israeli Self sheds light on an important cultural and ideational diffusion that has occurred between the Zionist settlers – and later the Jewish-Israeli population – and the indigenous Arab-Palestinian people in Historical Palestine. By examining Israeli food culture, national symbols, the Modern Hebrew language spoken in Israel, and culture, the authors trace the journey of Israeli national identity and culture, in which Arab-Palestinian culture has been imitated, adapted and celebrated, but strikingly also rejected, forgotten and denied. From the Arab Other to the Israeli Self provides a pathbreaking, probing and critical look into the processes of mobilization and articulation of elements of Palestinian culture in the construction of Israeli identity. This is an accessible, yet insightful and thought-provoking contribution to an under-researched area that I unreservedly recommend to anyone who wants to understand the complexity of identity politics in this contested land.
Levels of food insecurity (FI) and the need for food support have increased dramatically since th... more Levels of food insecurity (FI) and the need for food support have increased dramatically since the COVID-19 pandemic and the costof-living crisis. These crises also enabled substantial innovation in food support provision, including a move away from more traditional food bank models toward social supermarkets (SSM). These are characterized as not-for-profit social enterprises that sell mostly food, at low or symbolic prices to those living near or in poverty. In this article we provide a timely empirical account of SSMs and the experiences and perspectives of their members, focusing on three key themes: access, dignity, and choice. We use a mixed-methods approach based on questionnaires (n = 111) and interviews (n = 25) with SSMs members, engaging with local priorities and perspectives in the active co-creation of the research. Our findings demonstrate that SSM's provision is more inclusive and mindful of the diversity and agency of their members, doing away with preconceived ideas of food support recipients as passive citizens. While not a panacea, we argue that SSMs offer an alternative model for providing food support and one that could be replicated broadly or used side-by-side with food banks.
Background: The Covid-19 pandemic has increased the need for food support but simultaneously enab... more Background: The Covid-19 pandemic has increased the need for food support but simultaneously enabled substantial innovation in food support provision, including the evolution of social supermarkets (SSM). These allow consumers to choose from a range of low-cost products, minimise stigma and reduce food waste. Data from members of two Sussex SSM were gathered for their perspectives and experiences, as well as potential nutritional implications of the SSM. Methods: Questionnaires administered face-to-face during site visits and optional telephone interviews were used. Data were collected during three site visits; 111 participants completed questionnaires, and an additional 25 detailed interviews with members of the SSM were completed. All data were gathered between December 2021 and May 2022. Results: Overall, the SSMs were valued by their members. Social, economic and nutritional benefits were identified. SSM increased consumer choice and reduced stigma. Most members visited regularly, using SSM to supplement other food purchases. They valued the opportunity to choose their own foods and opportunities to socialise, in addition to the range of food and household items offered. The majority agreed that healthy eating was important but time and cost were barriers especially for younger members. SSM introduced members to novel foods and dishes, potentially diversifying dietary intakes. Challenges included restrictions on the amounts of food available, depending on the timing of visits. This was a greater challenge for those more reliant on SSM for household needs. Conclusions: SSM represent an innovative and less stigmatising model of food support. Greater variety of food offered suggests their potential to diversify and improve dietary intakes. Challenges include ensuring stability of food supply and reducing stigma further.
PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to examine how food aid providers in Sussex and Southwest Lon... more PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to examine how food aid providers in Sussex and Southwest London responded and managed during the pandemic.Design/methodology/approachThe methodological approach consists of three inter-related layers. A qualitative description research approach based on naturalistic inquiry, supplemented by site visits and personal observations was used.FindingsThe pandemic catalysed dramatic, often positive, changes to the provision of food aid, with a move away from the traditional food bank model. It brought about increased coordination and oversight, as well as the upscaling of capabilities, infrastructure and provisions.Originality/valueThe paper contributes to the literature on food aid in the UK It provides evidence for how providers are transforming the sector for the better and potentially helping to deal with the cost-of-living crisis.
Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to examine how food aid providers in Sussex and Southwest ... more Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to examine how food aid providers in Sussex and Southwest London responded and managed during the pandemic. Design/methodology/approach – The methodological approach consists of three inter-related layers. A qualitative description research approach based on naturalistic inquiry, supplemented by site visits and personal observations was used. Findings – The pandemic catalysed dramatic, often positive, changes to the provision of food aid, with a move away from the traditional food bank model. It brought about increased coordination and oversight, as well as the upscaling of capabilities, infrastructure and provisions. Originality/value – The paper contributes to the literature on food aid in the UK It provides evidence for how providers are transforming the sector for the better and potentially helping to deal with the cost-of-living crisis. Keywords Food aid, Food insecurity, Food waste, Surplus food, Food bank, COVID-19 pandemic, Poverty Paper type Research paper
As the current volume demonstrates, the issue of food and nationalism/national identity is more o... more As the current volume demonstrates, the issue of food and nationalism/national identity is more often than not approached from banal or everyday nationalism angles. To repeat some of our arguments in the volume, this is because the quotidian nature of food and eating lends itself well to the investigation of nationalism in the private sphere, the kind of investigation that has become more mainstream recently in the study of nationalism. However, an investigation of food and nationalism is not complete if it ignores the relatively well-studied, official or public side, since nationalism works both in the public and in the private spheres. The current and following chapters will turn their attention to ‘food and nationalism’ in a more conventional setting in which the investigative focus is on what the nation-state does. In other words, Chapters 4 and 5 examine ‘food and nationalism’ in the context in which the nation-state is seen as the major actor of nationalism, often as the main nation-builder. The current chapter concentrates on the internal aspect of the nation-state’s involvement with nation-building, while Chapter 5 considers the external dimension.
tourifIf you have any idea for a monograph or an edited volume that investigates food and identit... more tourifIf you have any idea for a monograph or an edited volume that investigates food and identity in our globalising world contact the series editors a.ichijo@kingston.ac.uk and ronald.ranta@kingtson.ac.uk or Sharla Plant sharla.plant@palgrave.com, Publisher, Palgrave Macmillan for more details. ABOUT THE SERIES From 'food security' and 'food wars' to 'food banks' and 'food waste', it is evident that food plays a significant role in our daily lives and our globalising world. It also plays an important part in how we perceive ourselves and others and how we relate to and experience global issues, such as the Covid-19 pandemic, the rise of populism, climate change, and various international conflict. The ambition of the 'Food and identity in a Globalising World' series is to present inter-and trans-disciplinary studies of food and identity as a way of better understanding the world we live in. The series encourages new, innovative and critical thinking with regard to food and identity and aims to include research and researchers from a wide geographical remit. It promotes a diverse and inclusive approach, bringing together various disciplines such as anthropology, sociology, politics, geography, gender studies, media, and tourism, and as such aims to serve as a valuable resource for those interested in the field, including researchers, practitioners, and students at all levels.
Focusing on food (in)security, this paper argues that the Covid-19 pandemic has shed light on wha... more Focusing on food (in)security, this paper argues that the Covid-19 pandemic has shed light on what has been so far neglected in the ongoing Brexit discussions. The current pandemic has produced startling images of empty supermarket shelves, shortages of farm workers, increased use of food banks and heightened concern over the health of those at the lower end of the socioeconomic scale. We argue that food insecurity was not created by the current pandemic but is a serious underlying issue in the UK, which has not been adequately considered in discussions about Brexit. In other words, the pandemic has simply highlighted the risk that Brexit will worsen food insecurity and the health of those already disadvantaged. We argue that the pandemic provides an opportunity for UK policy makers to consider the impact of food trade deals on food insecurity, one which we urge them to take.
This article focusses on the future of food in the UK in the context of Brexit. It examines the c... more This article focusses on the future of food in the UK in the context of Brexit. It examines the claims and promises made by Brexiteers before the referendum and juxtaposes these with the approach pursued by the Conservative‐led government since. The article argues that there is a clear dissonance between the two. This dissonance is the result of two important factors. First, the government is stuck in a non‐decision‐making mode, making it unable to pursue clear policies. Second, the food claims and promises made by Brexiteers are in opposition to what the vast majority of the public, food experts, farmers and food businesses want. Through exploring these two factors, and the Brexiteers’ claims and promises, the article explains what leaving the EU might mean for the future of food in the UK.
Based on interviews and surveys of Bulgarians living in the UK, the article explores the changing... more Based on interviews and surveys of Bulgarians living in the UK, the article explores the changing nature of Bulgarian foodways in the UK. Using banitsa, a 'traditional' Bulgarian breakfast dish, as the starting point for the research, the article examines the relationship Bulgarians in the UK have with their host and home communities as well as with their national identity and sense of belonging and the effects these have on their fodways and food consumption. The main claim the article makes is that the context of migration and of being a migrant engenders a deliberate attempt to foster and maintain an identity that is most often expressed in national terms, and most immediately performed in the everyday through food. Migrant belonging changes in such a way that the everyday becomes a means of identity construction and expression. Attitudes towards food - the making and serving of banitsa - illustrate this change.
This article explores the dynamics of belonging of European Union (EU) nationals living in the Un... more This article explores the dynamics of belonging of European Union (EU) nationals living in the United Kingdom (UK) in the context of UK's withdrawal from the EU. It uses a mixed‐methods study of prereferendum and postreferendum survey and interviews and focus groups to investigate patterns of belonging among EU nationals, shifts in the parameters of these patterns, and the overall impact of Brexit on them. The study identifies four patterns of belonging and argues that Brexit has significantly disrupted them, shifting them towards a new phase of rationalisation and reaction reliant on migrantness, Europeanness, and rights. In the aftermath of the referendum, EU nationals began to rethink their belonging, constituting themselves as a collectivity by making use of EU citizenship and a shared European identity. This constitutive dynamics is consequential for the status of EU nationals in the UK, for the boundaries of the political community of the British state, and also for Europe.
This paper examines the role Arab-Palestinian food plays in the construction of Israeli national ... more This paper examines the role Arab-Palestinian food plays in the construction of Israeli national identity and food culture. In particular, it sets out to understand the recent willingness in Jewish-Israeli society to acknowledge Arab, and to a lesser extent Arab-Palestinian, culture and food. This new phenomenon has resulted in the re-Arabization of Israeli food culture. For the first time Arab and Arab-Palestinian food is acknowledged, written about and celebrated. This follows a historically longer process in which the construction of Israeli identity and food culture was based on adaptation and imitation, leading to appropriation and nationalization of Arab-Palestinian food culture.
This article sets out to study the role that Palestine and the Arab-Palestinians have had on Isra... more This article sets out to study the role that Palestine and the Arab-Palestinians have had on Israeli national identity through the examination of Israeli food culture. Food culture played an important part not only in the emancipation of European Zionist-Jews who immigrated to Palestine before 1948 but also in the creation of the Israeli national identity, including its collective memory, national psyche and desired political aspirations. However, it is impossible to understand Israeli food culture, and Israeli identity and popular culture, without taking into account the environment in which and the people among whom it developed. In that respect, and as argued hereafter, for political and ideological reasons the Palestinian direct contribution to Israeli food culture, and by extension national identity, has been expunged or overlooked. Early Zionist encounter with the Arab-Palestinian people and their culture contained a mixture of romanticisation, admiration and imitation. However, with the Zionist aim of substituting the Arab-Palestinian people by creating a separate political and economic society, the process of encounter changed to replacement, appropriation and deliberate forgetting and rewriting of the past. In relation to Israeli food culture, the Arab-Palestinian food element was marginalised, blurred and reinterpreted as belonging to the Zionist settlers, or as being brought to Israel by the Mizrahi-Jews. In other words, Israeli food culture ‘needed’ the Arab-Palestinian culture as a source of imitation and localisation, but at the same time desired its de-Palestinianisation, together with the general idea of a separate Jewish state.
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Books by Ronald Ranta
Table of contents (12 chapters)
Introduction
Alejandro Colás, Daniel Monterescu, Ronald Ranta
Pages 1-20
Part I. Beginnings: Hybrid Food Cultures and Foodways
Spanish Settlers and Andean Food Systems
Lisa Markowitz
Pages 23-46
What Belongs in the “Federal Diet”? Depictions of a National Cuisine in the Early American Republic
Peter Mabli
Pages 47-63
The Taste of Colonialism? Changing Norms of Rice Production and Consumption in Modern Taiwan
Yujen Chen
Pages 65-84
‘Like the Papacy of Mexican Cuisine’: Mayoras and Traditional Foods in Contemporary Mexico
Claudia Prieto-Piastro, Alejandro Colás
Pages 85-106
Part II. From Erasure to Decolonisation
Unsettling the History of Macadamia Nuts in Northern New South Wales
Adele Wessell Adele Wessell
Pages 109-126
Definitions of Hawaiian Food: Evidence of Settler Colonialism in Selected Cookbooks from the Hawaiian Islands (1896–2021)
Laura Kitchings
Pages 127-146
Decolonising Israeli Food? Between Culinary Appropriation and Recognition in Israel/Palestine
Ronald Ranta, Daniel Monterescu
Pages 147-171
‘Uneasy Lies the Head That Wears the Crown’: Lamb or Kangaroo, Which Should Reign Supreme? The Implications of Heroising a Settler Colonial Food Icon as National Identity
Jackie Newling
Pages 173-199
Part III. After Decolonisation?
“A Manly Amount of Wreckage”: South African Food Culture and Settler Belonging in Ivan Vladislavić’s Double Negative
Nitzan Tal
Pages 203-220
Sustaining the Memory of Colonial Algeria Through Food
Amy L. Hubbell, Jorien van Beukering
Pages 221-245
The Predicaments of Settler Gastrocolonialism
Lorenzo Veracini
Pages 247-259
https://link.springer.com/book/10.1007/978-3-030-96268-5#toc
In this chapter, we argue that, starting with the Zionist establishment, then, after the establishment of the state, the Israeli government, tried to impose a new hegemonic food culture that rejected Jewish-diaspora food, and was grounded in modern concepts of nutrition, inspired by European food cultures, but based on local ingredients. in this new food culture, the differences between the various immigrant communities were expected to be less visible, and Arab-Palestinians invisible, at least on the plate. However, as we demonstrate through our analysis of cookbooks, culinary identities are hard to impose from the top-down. Israeli food history illustrates how attempts to impose from the top-down. Israeli food history illustrates how attempts to impose national food policies were negotiated and reinterpreted by those who were affected by them.
This book explores the role of food in society as a means of interrogating the concept of the nation-state and its sub-units, and reveals how the nation-state in its various disguises has been and is changing in response to accelerated globalisation. The chapters investigate various stages of national food: its birth, emergence, and decline, and why sometimes no national food emerges. By collecting and analysing a wide range of case studies (including Portugal, Mexico, Slovenia, the USA, Ghana, Bulgaria, Scotland, Catalonia, Palestine, Costa Rica, Chile, Canada, Ecuador, and Israel) the book illustrates ways in which various social forces work together to shape social and political realities concerning food.
The contributors, hailing from anthropology, history, sociology and political science, investigate the significance of specific food cultures, cuisines, dishes, and ingredients, and their association with national identity. In so doing, it becomes clearer how these two things interact, and demonstrates the scope and direction of the current study of food and nationalism.
Papers by Ronald Ranta
responded and managed during the pandemic.
Design/methodology/approach – The methodological approach consists of three inter-related layers. A
qualitative description research approach based on naturalistic inquiry, supplemented by site visits and
personal observations was used.
Findings – The pandemic catalysed dramatic, often positive, changes to the provision of food aid, with a move
away from the traditional food bank model. It brought about increased coordination and oversight, as well as
the upscaling of capabilities, infrastructure and provisions.
Originality/value – The paper contributes to the literature on food aid in the UK It provides evidence for how
providers are transforming the sector for the better and potentially helping to deal with the cost-of-living crisis.
Keywords Food aid, Food insecurity, Food waste, Surplus food, Food bank, COVID-19 pandemic, Poverty
Paper type Research paper
Table of contents (12 chapters)
Introduction
Alejandro Colás, Daniel Monterescu, Ronald Ranta
Pages 1-20
Part I. Beginnings: Hybrid Food Cultures and Foodways
Spanish Settlers and Andean Food Systems
Lisa Markowitz
Pages 23-46
What Belongs in the “Federal Diet”? Depictions of a National Cuisine in the Early American Republic
Peter Mabli
Pages 47-63
The Taste of Colonialism? Changing Norms of Rice Production and Consumption in Modern Taiwan
Yujen Chen
Pages 65-84
‘Like the Papacy of Mexican Cuisine’: Mayoras and Traditional Foods in Contemporary Mexico
Claudia Prieto-Piastro, Alejandro Colás
Pages 85-106
Part II. From Erasure to Decolonisation
Unsettling the History of Macadamia Nuts in Northern New South Wales
Adele Wessell Adele Wessell
Pages 109-126
Definitions of Hawaiian Food: Evidence of Settler Colonialism in Selected Cookbooks from the Hawaiian Islands (1896–2021)
Laura Kitchings
Pages 127-146
Decolonising Israeli Food? Between Culinary Appropriation and Recognition in Israel/Palestine
Ronald Ranta, Daniel Monterescu
Pages 147-171
‘Uneasy Lies the Head That Wears the Crown’: Lamb or Kangaroo, Which Should Reign Supreme? The Implications of Heroising a Settler Colonial Food Icon as National Identity
Jackie Newling
Pages 173-199
Part III. After Decolonisation?
“A Manly Amount of Wreckage”: South African Food Culture and Settler Belonging in Ivan Vladislavić’s Double Negative
Nitzan Tal
Pages 203-220
Sustaining the Memory of Colonial Algeria Through Food
Amy L. Hubbell, Jorien van Beukering
Pages 221-245
The Predicaments of Settler Gastrocolonialism
Lorenzo Veracini
Pages 247-259
https://link.springer.com/book/10.1007/978-3-030-96268-5#toc
In this chapter, we argue that, starting with the Zionist establishment, then, after the establishment of the state, the Israeli government, tried to impose a new hegemonic food culture that rejected Jewish-diaspora food, and was grounded in modern concepts of nutrition, inspired by European food cultures, but based on local ingredients. in this new food culture, the differences between the various immigrant communities were expected to be less visible, and Arab-Palestinians invisible, at least on the plate. However, as we demonstrate through our analysis of cookbooks, culinary identities are hard to impose from the top-down. Israeli food history illustrates how attempts to impose from the top-down. Israeli food history illustrates how attempts to impose national food policies were negotiated and reinterpreted by those who were affected by them.
This book explores the role of food in society as a means of interrogating the concept of the nation-state and its sub-units, and reveals how the nation-state in its various disguises has been and is changing in response to accelerated globalisation. The chapters investigate various stages of national food: its birth, emergence, and decline, and why sometimes no national food emerges. By collecting and analysing a wide range of case studies (including Portugal, Mexico, Slovenia, the USA, Ghana, Bulgaria, Scotland, Catalonia, Palestine, Costa Rica, Chile, Canada, Ecuador, and Israel) the book illustrates ways in which various social forces work together to shape social and political realities concerning food.
The contributors, hailing from anthropology, history, sociology and political science, investigate the significance of specific food cultures, cuisines, dishes, and ingredients, and their association with national identity. In so doing, it becomes clearer how these two things interact, and demonstrates the scope and direction of the current study of food and nationalism.
responded and managed during the pandemic.
Design/methodology/approach – The methodological approach consists of three inter-related layers. A
qualitative description research approach based on naturalistic inquiry, supplemented by site visits and
personal observations was used.
Findings – The pandemic catalysed dramatic, often positive, changes to the provision of food aid, with a move
away from the traditional food bank model. It brought about increased coordination and oversight, as well as
the upscaling of capabilities, infrastructure and provisions.
Originality/value – The paper contributes to the literature on food aid in the UK It provides evidence for how
providers are transforming the sector for the better and potentially helping to deal with the cost-of-living crisis.
Keywords Food aid, Food insecurity, Food waste, Surplus food, Food bank, COVID-19 pandemic, Poverty
Paper type Research paper
longer process in which the construction of Israeli identity and food culture was based on adaptation and imitation, leading to appropriation and nationalization of Arab-Palestinian food culture.
people among whom it developed. In that respect, and as argued hereafter, for political and ideological reasons the Palestinian direct contribution to Israeli food culture, and by
extension national identity, has been expunged or overlooked. Early Zionist encounter with the Arab-Palestinian people and their culture contained a mixture of romanticisation,
admiration and imitation. However, with the Zionist aim of substituting the Arab-Palestinian people by creating a separate political and economic society, the process of encounter changed to replacement, appropriation and deliberate forgetting and rewriting of the past. In relation to Israeli food culture, the Arab-Palestinian food element was
marginalised, blurred and reinterpreted as belonging to the Zionist settlers, or as being brought to Israel by the Mizrahi-Jews. In other words, Israeli food culture ‘needed’ the
Arab-Palestinian culture as a source of imitation and localisation, but at the same time desired its de-Palestinianisation, together with the general idea of a separate Jewish state.