Food
Tell me what you eat and I will tell you who you are. Today, food and drink has become an issue that is sometimes polarising. What determines what we eat and what underlying mechanisms affect our diet? This is something that researchers at the Centre for Consumption Research are constantly investigating.
Research on food has been a prominent theme ever since the start of Centre for consumption research. The research is often conducted together with other departments at the University of Gothenburg, researchers at Chalmers University of Technology, and in collaboration with Nordic and international partners. Major initiated projects have concerned perceptions of food, health, the environment and meals among children, young people, the elderly and families with children.
The researchers at the Centre for Consumption Research seek answers to questions such as:
How does the process of aging change the meaning of food and meals?
Does it have any significance for children's understanding of food, health and the environment if they themselves are involved in research on their own everyday eating habits?
How do families with children deal with everyday food choices based on different life situations?
How do consumers view issues of risk, concern and trust in relation to food and food alarms? How do they relate to media reporting, advice from authorities and the range of products available in shops?
When, where, how and why do new parents use prepared food for their babies? How do they deal with often conflicting discourses on ready-to-eat food, health and sustainability in relation to their children?
How does different life situations affect everyday food choices?
Theoretically, the research has a broad cultural and social science base, often inspired by actor-network theory.
The researchers have also developed an application of the concept of foodscapes, inspired by the French philosopher Gilles Deleuze, which has been used in several projects and publications on the foodscapes of children and young people. Another source of inspiration is practice theory applied to the study of risk and ready-to-eat food.
