An Imported Thanksgiving

Evidence of the (sometimes) illusive American food culture

Studying abroad in Santiago, Chile last semester and living with a Chilean family I assumed I wouldn’t participate in any Thanksgiving festivities. It wasn’t a big deal, I thought. I had done very well in the not-being-homesick department so that success would extend to a Thursday like any other Thursday, right?

Wrong. As the holiday approached, my need to be with family and eat turkey steadily increased. Luckily, a team of exchange students (largely American) came to the rescue. Not surprisingly, I wasn’t alone in my first Thanksgiving away from home state. We decided that if we couldn’t be with our families, at least we would be away from our families together. It was the next best thing; a day to forget we were thousands of miles south of the good ol’ USA and to pretend the stuffing tasted just like grandma’s.

Surprisingly, there was little need to pretend. Our potluck was impresionante, as the Chileans would say. A snapshot of the dinner by the numbers:

• 40 people (American, German, Spanish, Portuguese, Dutch, British, Australian, French)
• 1 turkey
• 4 types of mashed potatoes
• 1 green bean casserole
• 3 variations of sweet potatoes
• 1 Portuguese cake
• 3 Spanish tortillas
• 2 apple crisps
• 1 tv showing American football
• Barely any alcohol

GMOverdramatic

Its a common axiom among some people interested in food that Genetically Modified Organisms (GMOs) are a bad idea. This sentiment ranges in intensity from those who think organic food is simply more nutritious to people who believe GMOs are destined to destroy the human race. Much like Brittany’s post about local food, I think this opinion might need a closer look. The following is by no means the whole discussion on GMOs, but hopefully it will raise some questions and lead to some good discussion.

I think the biggest reason people mistakenly demonize GMOs has nothing to do with the crops themselves, but rather the companies that produce them. The predatory nature of companies like Monsanto has been lamented by farmers and activists around them globe. Perhaps these business practices could be a topic of another post (or five or six posts!), but they really have nothing to do with the product.

It is also likely that the incredible rise in the popularity organic foods might have led some to dislike or distrust genetically engineered (GE) foods. The logic here seems valid at first glance: organic food is better, so GE food must be worse! But a closer look reveals several inconsistencies. Consider the Bt pesticide. Bt is a bacterium that has insecticidal properties but is considered safe for humans. Because Bt is naturally occurring, it can be used on organic crops without risk of losing organic certification. Not long ago, scientist discovered a way to insert genetic information from Bt into the genome of certain crops like corn and cotton. These “Bt crops” produce the same insecticide as the Bt bacterium and have been very successful since becoming available in 1996. Bt crops cannot be considered organic because of this genetic modification. So which is really better? Humans are still ingesting the Bt byproducts that have been proven safe (even the Europeans use Bt as a pesticide!), but the Bt crops do not require the additional environmental burdens of using water and burning fossil fuels that are required for pesticide application.

Eating Pizza in Brazil

My first Food Studies paper has been published in the 2010-2011 issue of Portal, the yearly academic publication from the Teresa Lozano Long Institute of Latin American Studies. It is a simple account of my recent study abroad experience in Brazil. It is so interesting how eating pizza with my host family made me aware of so many social issues in their society and lives. This, is how I study food.

Eating Pizza in Brazil: poverty and other social issues

The entire world eats Pizza, or something that resembles it, such as seafood pizza in Japan or the pizza with fruit Brazilians eat here in Belo Horizonte, Minas Gerais. At LLI- LAS, my concentration is officially Portuguese, but my true focus lies in food studies. Normally, a student like myself, who is interested in learning about pizza, would probably focus on the food itself: the toppings, the sauces, or the crust. However, in my studies, I learn about larger social issues through my personal experiences and interest in food. I am currently studying abroad in Brazil and have had the honor of living with an amazing host family of four: father, mother, and two sons, ages 22 and 16. The other night on the way home from an event, we decided to get a pizza for dinner. I did not realize how different the whole process was going to be from the “American” way of getting a pizza. The experience revealed many social and economic issues related to poverty. The following story about eating pizza with my new Brazilian family reveals a deeper social context, beyond gastronomy, in the way pizza is obtained, received, and consumed. Enjoy.

Pulling Mozz

Andrea, il casaro. Photo by: J. Agyemang

This is Andrea. He is probably one of the happiest men I have ever had the pleasure of meeting. He’s a very generous man, and always gives his customers generous samples of cheese, even though he knows they have already had a taste. His cheese is the best cheese I have ever tasted in my life, and it’s probably because he himself put in the blood, sweat, and tears to make it (not literally). Along with fresh ingredients and a happy spirit, I think any food can be just as tasty as his cheese.

His philosophy: Ask questions, listen to the answers, and enjoy life with the people you love most.

When I was in Italy this past summer with the UT Nutrition program, I had the opportunity to help the local cheese maker make mozzarella cheese. It was by far one of the coolest and most fun experiences I’ve had in life.

Cheese making in Syracuse, Italy starts at 4am, when Andrea, the cheese maker or casaro, drives up to his little cheese shop in his little van full of milk. Every morning, he makes the one and a half hour journey to Ragusa to get milk from some of the best, and happiest cows in the country so that his mozzarella will be extra fresh and extra tasty. I remember almost being run over when he finally arrived that morning. I think he was in a hurry because he was running behind schedule. Upon his arrival, we began to help unload all the various cheese products he brought from Ragusa such as pecorino (sheep) cheese, little cheese wheels, and a whole lot of other cheese products, obviously. When the time came to pump the milk from the van to the back of the shop, he stopped us and began to tell us the most important trait of the milk that was sitting and waiting only a short distance away from where we were standing. “Il latte è vivo!” “The milk is alive!” he said as he flashed his hands at us as if they were flashing lights. This means, that the milk is unpasteurized and still contains the original bacteria in it that comes from the cow. The bacteria in the milk helps in the fermentation process and gives the cheese a distinct and fresh flavor.

After hours of inoculating and stirring large containers of milk, sticking our hands in boiling water, and pulling mozzarella, we were finally done, and he sent us all home with a small package of pecorino cheese and thanked us for our help. On my walk home, (by this time, it was 7am) I began thinking to myself, “Why is the food system is so much different here than it is in the states?” Every city I visited in Sicily had a fresh market that was open daily with fresh fruits, vegetables, meats, bread, and cheese, all very affordable too. I can’t ever remember spending more than €10 ($15) at the market for a few days worth of food. I think the majority of it has to do with lifestyle and life views. The views of success in the states and in Sicily are quite different. Most people I spoke with in Sicily preferred a slow and humble lifestyle viewing success as living a long happy life with friends and family, while most people in the states are fast paced and want to be recognized for anything and everything, viewing success as having money, and a lot of it (in general of course). I know a lot of different factors come into play when it comes to our current food system other than just philosophical views, but ultimately, I think that’s what it comes down to.

The people get what they ask for.

Food and Life in Brazil

This year I had the pleasure to live in three different States in Brazil, starting in the lovely Northeastern State of Bahia, then working my way down to the traditional Minas Gerais, and finally finished my adventure abroad in the famous Rio de Janeiro. I lived with three different family with three very different financial situations and life styles. I enjoyed seeing their different foodways and there were a couple of important things that I would like to share about food and life that I learned with them. Language and Money.

Language and Food

Studying Portuguese, or what I like to call Brazilian, certain words caught my attention and made me think about my host families food situation. Especially with my family in Belo Horizonte when they would constantly talk about foods that would enche (fill yourself up). Like when our host father would always say, “Põe mais arroz meu filho.” (Put more rice on your plate my son). Then I got a lesson in Brazilian indirect communication when I once mentioned that I “like” vegetables… to him that meant I “would like” to eat more vegetables. Next thing you know my father brought home the harvest from the Sacolão (literally meaning “the big sack” it is a veg and fruit shop). It was good though since they start incorporating veg in their diet as well.

Then, there was my host mother who always warned her filhos (kids) about different food myths such as we couldn’t eat mamão (papaya) with milk, no hot cake since it would give us a stomach ache, and she did not like when we would take a bath after eating dinner. My host brother helped me understand the history of those common myths, explaining that most were invented during Portuguese colonization of Brazil. The slave owners used these myths to try to control and prevent slaves from enjoying or partaking of certain foods.

Without Money, No Food for You

From simple beans and rice to a full Churrasco buffet, I was fed a lot of food living with my different Brazilian families this year. I got a reality check about the costs of eating and feeding a family as well. Without money, you can not eat. Without enough money, you can’t eat well. Ex. my host father uses almost all of his money to feed his family since he is the only source of income. Watching him I learned many of his techniques to preserve and extend the life of foodstuffs. He didn’t let anything go to waste; he would beat air in eggs to use less, save and plant seeds, divide up all the food up equally, cut up single tomato and call it salad, and on and on. He would some how bring home food from work that he was able to get for free, including a Cesta Básica. But the best lesson that I learned was with luxury items such as small portions of chocolate, cheese, or meat. It doesn’t matter how much that he would bring home, an his economically poor family will eat it all mindlessly quick. So I bought a kilo of sliced ham and was surprising upset initially that it disappeared in the same rate as when my host father brings home 200 grams. Sometimes people forget to conserve and respect that things that are “free”. I wasn’t mad though because I remember what my host mother stated once, that people should be able to eat freely until they are satisfied because it is horrible to deny someone food. When your life consists of eating basic foods everyday, food different from the norm will always be desired and consumed.

As a university undergrad, I know that we have complex economical relationships with food during college but I challenge other students to think deeply about their relation with food. And how about your language about food and eating? Some times just changing words, can changes lives. What are couple important things that you learned about food this year?

Comparing Brazil and US Foodways

After a six month exchange program in Brazil, I think Brazilian foodways are not any better or worse than American foodways. Surprisingly, I found myself defending my culture’s “decisions” to eat unhealthfully. When I would begin to explain about the geographical and economical problems of food in the States, Brazilians began to understand why Americans eat the way they do.

Everyone has a messed up diet. I use the example of the Hot Dog. When I asked Brazilians what came to mind when they thought of Americans, they would mostly say that we are hamburger and hot dog eaters. After living in three regions of Brazil, I came to the conclusion that Brazilians eat much more hot dogs than we do (where as we eat a lot more hamburgers). At times, I think that Brazilians treat hot dogs as if it were a real meat. When they are not eating them whole at the street stands, they are cut up and put in pastas and soups. As an American when I see chopped up hot dog and noodles, it brings to mind a poor mom trying to feed something that her kids will eat, or a lazy college student that doesn’t know how to cook.

mmm hoty dogy

A Mesa de Bom Comer

I am not a nutrition major, but I am a foodist. A student studying the importance of food beyond our physical dependancy. In the last few years in college, I learned that food is the quintessential example of achieving a happier, healthier life.

In my host family’s home in Belo Horizonte, I noticed several foodways that I wanted to change, but I had to stop and think why do I wanted change these foodways. Demanding change without reason will prevent you from being able to educate and kill the motivation of others. I wanted to leave a picture with my host family that summarized some of the food rules that we tried to implement over my four months time living with them. I wanted to make something similar to the new MyPlate icon, but something more personalized just for them. So I thought, heck with the plate! I want a MESA, a Mesa de Bom Comer (a Table of Good Eats).

Basic Food Rules anyone can apply without studying nutritional sciences:

My Garden, Our Garden

My Garden, Our Garden: my first vegetable garden with my host family in Brazil

I decided to try my hand at growing a vegetable garden. The project was initially for myself, to learn and connect more with my food studies. Yet, I quickly realized that there is a lot more to gardening than just biology and manual labor. Every time I stepped foot into my garden, tons of metaphors came to mind. The most important was learning that nature is life. We have to treat it like a relationship and not an obstacle. It needs to be loved, fed, and wanted or it will die. If it dies, we will die. Maybe not instantly but we will decay eventually from inside out.

In my food studies, I always hear this statistic that only 4% of the population of the United States grows all of the country’s food. I assume that there are not many Americans who want to do the physical labor or devote the time required to grow real food, nor understand the complexed science and biological relationships between nature and food. But, I feel that we have to challenge ourselves to learn about food. Just like any field of study that we might get into, we must learn the basics, the history, the traditional ways and thoughts to achieve something different, great, and truly innovative. I always remember the example that Rocket Scientist, Wernher von Braun; it is said that he didn’t like mathematics and physics but his fascinations with space travel inspired him to study the subjects he needed to achieve his dream. So I thought, if I want to bring food sovereignty to the world, then I need to understand what is food. Hence the garden.

The Other Little Things

As I mentioned in my last post, the little things were powerful enough to change my life. But of course, there are other little things that I have experienced abroad that I wouldn’t like to live with forever. Some are comical, but many are sad truths about the world and food. Experiencing these other little things motivated me to question and think how I can change the world.

 

The Little Things

During the last few years, I have been blessed to have experienced several foreign countries. Traveling internationally I think is what got me into studying food, because I enjoy seeing how people around the world treat food. It is amazing to learn about food taboos, etiquette, and I like to challenge my palate. Weird food combinations, smells, and at times disturbing appearances can be surprising at times, but it brings more understanding about the meaning food. Setting cuisine aside, I find that it is always the little things associated with food that end up having an impact on my life, because the little things reveal a deeper meaning about society.

 

Here are few examples that changed my life:

 

Sharing a single car of beer

Beer is so important. It would take forever to analyze its social importance, but the point I want to make is that beer promotes sharing. In Salvador, Brazil, it is common to share a single can (350ml) of cerveja, dividing it amongst a table of glasses. In my culture, each person would get his/her own can.