Food Nation Essay

forage con nones more than than just an intake to be commensurate to sustain feel. It is a reflection of a myriad of culture existing in a society. Looking at f ar, one can see its miscellaneous fusions of cultural identities prepared to satisfy ones appetite. Food is a perfect example of a world that enters into the process of globalization where nations embrace the die hard of cultural exchange. Countries such as the United States and Italy are known for having diverse demographics. The diversity of its population brought influences into their nourishment as well.However, although both countries may have consolidated each others culture into their nutriment, there are still differences which make them distinct from each other such as how they handle and chance viands. The United States is one of the largest countries when it comes to its size and population. It has a wide variety of immigrants which flowed starting from the nineteenth century and as its population conti nues to grow, its culture has been as dynamic as its food (Counihan, 2002, p. 26). Large part of these immigrants later joined the American workforce as every parent became employed.The absence of either the mother or the father at family bed veered the majority of the population away from home-cooked meals. Eating out became an alternative for families to have their meals together and eating out means buying food from a restaurant (Schlosser, 2001, p. 4). From this concept of eating outside the confines of a home, the troubled food world was born. The term fast-food refers to a speedy availability of food, gain ground described as a provision of limited, standard menu with quick service (Royle & Towers, 2002, p. 190).Fast food became not just a way to postulate skipped meals at home but it turned out to be a lifestyle. The United States initially became known for its fast food because of the rise of popular food chains such as McDonalds and Burger King. Its convenience of havi ng ready-made food suits the lifestyle of people especially those who go to work early and go home late. Since there are a large number of working people in the United States, they flock to these restaurants to eat. Foods are being prepared in bulks to auspicate the huge numbers of customers.Most ingredients provided are de diered frozen. Cooking methods involved one or a couple of processes to guarantee its speed. Assembling ingredients in a line system like burger patties will be able to cook a dozen of it at the same time (Schlosser, 2001, p. 69). Some of the food ingredients only take adding hot water and its ready for preparation. Fast foods are usually packed in paper wraps, foil, and cartons. The materials of these wrappings are disposable which suites the people on-the-go to eat the food wherever they are.Despite the convenience brought about by fast food, healthier ingredients are being given up. As previously mentioned, ingredients are frozen which indicates that these a re not fresh and devoid of its natural healthy components with much more added fats. Since Americans are busy with work with no time to prepare food for them, fast food becomes the next available fast option. Italians, on the other hand, became the center of what should be a counterpart of fast food. A country rich in culture, its food gained renowned identity throughout the world. Just like in the United States, Italian food is a lifestyle.It is a lifestyle which extends to close interaction with families and friends in a laid-back environment dining and drinking wine (Parasecoli, 2004, p. xii). The relaxed atmosphere among most Italian household can be seen as a break from the political and social unrest that reign the Italian state during history. Italian food is famous for the cheese, the wine, and the pasta. Made from a wide array of ocean foods, vegetables, and meat Italian food is prepared picking up the fresh ingredients and served as a craft of art. Ricotta, for example, i s bought by locals straight from a shepherd on the day it is made (Harrison, 1989, p.17). Italians regard their food not just as an energy provider but as a medicine for the soul, one of lifes abiding pleasures (Harrison, 1989, p. 17). Most of the Italian foods are cooked in accordance with traditions and the food preparation varies from the various regions of Milan and Florence (Harrison, 1989, p. 143). Taking this traditional view of Italian cuisine, a movement was established to retain not just the traditional cooking of the Italians but also all traditional cuisines of the world. The Slow Food movement is primitively established as a counterpart of fast food.The idea of this movement is to make food from scratch in your own kitchen (Kummer, Cushner, & Schlosser, 2002, p. 10) rather than the processed conventionalised food at fast food chains. Just like Italian food, the movement aims to take food as a pleasurable experience offered by life in contrary to fast foods (Pollan, 2 008, p. 194). The Slow Movement suggests making food out of ingredients that are ideally grown in the backyard or farms, harvested, and cooked with other natural recipes. The people who eat the foods are not only consumers but co-producers as well.Just like the Italian food, this movement also promotes the pleasure of food eaten and shared communally (Pollan, 2006, p. 259). Though this movement proved to be promising, some may say that in contrast with fast-food, the Slow Food Movement is more expensive to obtain and to do. Since fast-food is more accessible and cheaper, the movement has been tagged as elitist and cannot be afforded by ordinary people (Kummer, et al. , p. 10). By its term of slow-food, this may not suit the lifestyle of most people coming from the working class due to the lack of time for food preparation.United States and Italy vary from the way they live their life with food. Though nowadays, some of their own cuisines have been inspired from one another. Their vi ews of food have a huge gap as the two nations came from different backgrounds and developed cultures that set them apart from each other. Their cuisine style and food preparation became significant in the world today and though different in principles, people enjoy it nonetheless.References Counihan, C. (2002). Food in the USA A Reader. bleak York Routledge. Harrison, B. G. (1989). Italian Days.New York Atlantic Monthly Press. Kummer, C. , Cusner, S. , & Schlosser, E. (2002). The Pleasures of Slow Food Celebrating Authentic Traditions, Flavors, and Recipes. USA Chronicles Books. Parasecoli, F. (2004). Food Culture in Italy. Connecticut Greenwood Publishing Group, Inc. Pollan, M. (2008). In Defense of Food An Eaters Manifesto. New York The Penguin Press. Royle, T. & Towers, B. (2002). Labour Relations in the Global Fast-Food Industry. New York Routledge. Schlosser, E. (2001). Fast Food Nation The Dark Side of the All-American Meal. New York Houghton Mifflin Books.