What The World Eats

[Roxie]

One Week's Worth of Food Around Our Planet

Here's something that I came across which I thought was very poignant. One week's worth of food from around the world. The pictures say it all:


Calorie-laden malnourishment (http://pandagon.blogsome.com/2007/11/26/6361/)
Posted by Amanda Marcotte November 26, 2007 in Food

Sara Robinson linked to this fascinating photoessay of families around the world (chosen clearly for their “averageness”) standing by a table with a week’s worth of their food purchases on it. Sara displayed these two pictures that show the disparity in need between middle class Americans and refugees living in Chad.

I recommend Sara’s thoughts on the issue of worldwide hunger, and I have nothing to add to that. This post is about something else I noticed, in the difference between the average American diet shown here and the average middle class diet in other countries. See if you can spot the difference.

United States: The Revis family of North Carolina Food expenditure for one week: $341.98 Favorite foods: spaghetti, potatoes, sesame chicken
http://i17.photobucket.com/albums/b58/Roxie21/wtwe-nc.jpg


United States: The Caven family of California Food expenditure for one week: $159.18
Favorite foods: beef stew, berry yogurt sundae, clam chowder, ice cream
http://i17.photobucket.com/albums/b58/Roxie21/wtwe-cali.jpg


Chad: The Aboubakar family of Breidjing Camp Food expenditure for one week: 685 CFA Francs or $1.23 Favorite foods: soup with fresh sheep meat
http://i17.photobucket.com/albums/b58/Roxie21/wtwe-chad.jpg


Japan: The Ukita family of Kodaira City Food expenditure for one week: 37,699 Yen or $317.25
http://i17.photobucket.com/albums/b58/Roxie21/wtwe1.jpg


Italy: The Manzo family of Sicily Food expenditure for one week: 214.36 Euros or $260.11 Favorite foods: fish, pasta with ragu, hot dogs, frozen fish sticks
http://i17.photobucket.com/albums/b58/Roxie21/wtwe2.jpg


Germany: The Melander family of Bargteheide Food expenditure for one week: 375.39 Euros or $500.07
http://i17.photobucket.com/albums/b58/Roxie21/wtwe-germany.jpg



Mexico: The Casales family of Cuernavaca Food expenditure for one week: 1,862.78 Mexican Pesos or $189.09 Favorite foods: pizza, crab, pasta, chicken
http://i17.photobucket.com/albums/b58/Roxie21/wtwe-mexico.jpg


Poland: The Sobczynscy family of Konstancin-Jeziorna Food expenditure for one week: 582.48 Zlotys or $151.27 Family recipe: Pig's knuckles with carrots, celery and parsnips
http://i17.photobucket.com/albums/b58/Roxie21/wtwe1-poland.jpg


Egypt: The Ahmed family of Cairo Food expenditure for one week: 387.85 Egyptian Pounds or $68.53 Family recipe: Okra and mutton
http://i17.photobucket.com/albums/b58/Roxie21/wtwe-egypt.jpg


Ecuador: The Ayme family of Tingo Food expenditure for one week : $31.55 Family recipe : Potato soup with cabbage
http://i17.photobucket.com/albums/b58/Roxie21/wtwe-ecuador.jpg


Bhutan: The Namgay family of Shingkhey Village Food expenditure for one week: 224.93 ngultrum or $5.03 Family recipe: Mushroom, cheese and pork
http://i17.photobucket.com/albums/b58/Roxie21/wtwe-bhutan.jpg


Kuwait: The Al Haggan family of Kuwait City Food expenditure for one week: 63.63 dinar or $221.45
Family recipe: Chicken biryani with basmati rice
http://i17.photobucket.com/albums/b58/Roxie21/wtwe-kuwait.jpg


China: The Dong family of Beijing Food expenditure for one week: 1,233.76 Yuan or $155.06
Favorite foods: fried shredded pork with sweet and sour sauce
http://i17.photobucket.com/albums/b58/Roxie21/wtwe-china.jpg


Mongolia: The Batsuuri family of Ulaanbaatar Food expenditure for one week: 41,985.85 togrogs or $40.02 Family recipe: Mutton dumplings
http://i17.photobucket.com/albums/b58/Roxie21/wtwe-mongolia.jpg


Great Britain: The Bainton family of Cllingbourne Ducis Food expenditure for one week: 155.54 British Pounds or $253.15 Favorite foods: avocado, mayonnaise sandwich, prawn cocktail, chocolate fudge cake with cream
http://i17.photobucket.com/albums/b58/Roxie21/wtwe-greatbritain.jpg

If your answer is, “The presence of fresh produce,” bingo. Not that the Americans didn’t have any, but only the British family really one-upped them in terms of relying on processed food. There’s another American family represented, and they have more fruit, but roughly the same issue.

But I come not to wag my finger at and shame Americans for their diets. My impatience with individualized guilt-based solutions grows daily, and this is no exception. Neil’s weekender post at Ezra’s points to a larger, social policy-based cause for Americans’ bad eating habits (http://ezraklein.typepad.com/blog/2007/11/pass-the-green.html), within a larger post about the John Edwards plan to fight malnutrition and hunger in the U.S.

It’s hard for poor people to eat a balanced diet. While calorie-dense foods containing lots of fat and processed carbohydrates are cheap, fruits and vegetables are expensive. This is partly because we allocate 0.37% of farm subsidies to fruits and vegetables, compared to 73.80% for meat and dairy (much of which goes to subsidizing feed grains for animals). The results are predictable — in order to meet the USDA guidelines for a healthy diet, poor families would have to spend 70% of their food budget on fruits and vegetables. They actually end up spending about 15%.

This is why I tend to get red in the face when I hear some ignorant asshole bloviating about the poor in America are doing just fine food-wise, since so many of them (like all Americans) are overweight. That only makes sense if you think the only nutrient is calories, and if you think that, then you are being willfully ignorant, since we’ve all had the food pyramid and/or the four basic food groups pushed on us since preschool. You can both be fat and malnourished, actually. Edwards’ plan is to address the lack of balance in the diets of the poor by trying to get more affordable fresh fruits and vegetables into their neighborhoods, because right now even people who are able to spend more money on these items often don’t have access.

But the difference between the price of processed food and calorie-dense meats and dairy products and the price of fresh produce (which is going up rapidly due to rising gasoline prices) doesn’t just affect the poor, but also the middle class. I look at the picture of this American family and I see that they’ve got two teenage boys, and their food budget ($342 a week) reflects their needs. Keeping up with the calorie needs of two active and probably growing teenage boys will dominate the food priorities of any family like that, and so I imagine the temptation to load up on calorie-heavy processed foods, meats, and cheeses is nearly impossible to avoid.

But it’s not good for you. Now, I’ll admit up front that I’m a bit uptight about food. Not terribly so—I eat of the junk food, make no mistake—but I put a lot of effort into eating fresh produce and whole grains and restricting the animals fats. Over the holiday, I indulged in the bevy of Thanksgiving foods, the processed food casseroles, the refined-sugar-and-fat-heavy desserts, etc. and I laid around for three days, not getting any exercise. By the end of it (driving 7 hours a day for two of those days didn’t help), I felt like shit. My head and back hurt, I wanted to sleep 12 hours a day, and I had no sex drive to speak of. Returning to an exercise routine fixed me right back up, but all I could think was that my problems stemming from just a few days of poor diet and little exercise are probably the standard life of a good deal of Americans. And it bothered me, patriot that I am.

I think a lot of people would like to eat better, but it’s just expensive. Farm subsidies are a controversial topic on both the left and the right, but if we’re going to have them, why not transfer them to produce agriculture? Make those vegetables a lot cheaper, and let the price of stuff that’s bad for you inch up. We should look to social solutions for this issue not just for the poor, but for the middle class as well.

[4letterwords]

I can't imagine eating so much processed food... I think I'd kill myself.

And not to offend Roxie, but this is the most interesting post (imo) that youve made so far... as in, I read the whole thing... kudos

[Roxie]

No offense taken. I don't expect everyone (or anyone for that matter) to be interested in everything I post.

[RoxFontaine]

I just fell in love with Amanda Marcotte.

[Radiance]

This thread makes me sad cause I eat less food than "The Aboubakar family of Breidjing Camp". So what... is this thread supposed to make me want to go kick my bosses teeth in cause I barely have enough money to pay my rent and utilities? Granted I could get rid of my cellphone and actually eat a little more, but then i'd get fired from my job because I don't have a number where they can reach me via email and phone. This thread does nothing but make me hate the people around me more. :3

Hell... I go to school for a compsci degree (aprox $30,000), I get my MCSC for server 2003 (7x $150 + books), SQL DBA 2000 & 2005 (2x $180x3 + books), and multiple years experience. I'm damned good at what I do, and yet I still eat less than people in Chad? *sigh*

[Roxie]

Actually the point isn't so much the quantity (though you cannot deny its importance) but the quality of the food. Malnourishment has many faces, not just the skeletal pot bellied children in those commercials.

[Digital Masta]

Mexicans love their Coke.

[Radiance]

Actually the point isn't so much the quantity (though you cannot deny its importance) but the quality of the food. Malnourishment has many faces, not just the skeletal pot bellied children in those commercials.

In that case, i've got this topic covered on both ends. :x I remember.... I used to remember what meat tasted like. Also fruit... BLARGH.

[Roxie]

Mexicans love their Coke.
Yah! I saw that. Apparently, Coke is still made with real sugar there and, so I hear, is MUCH more tasty than the HFCS crap we get here. I bet it doesn't make you feel as bad either.

I was on the nutrisystem diet for about two months. And although I didn't loose any weight (I don't think. I think I lost inches, cause tighter things ARE fitting better now) it has helped curbed some of my less healthy habits and spiked my others. That I'm greatful for.

I really just noticed how much on Sunday. Being that I work weekends from 7:30am-3:30am, getting a good breakfast can be a challenge. I was really hungry so I got a hunnybun and some fruit punch (didn't want soda, can't stand that minute maid "juice"). I felt like crap for about 90 minutes after I had eaten it. Just DRAINED.

Later, during my 30 minute lunch break, I went to mcdonald's got some grilled chicken and small fries and a small soda. But as I was sipping the sprite I realized I really just don't like it anymore. I poured it out and got water instead.

I found myself wishing I could get FRUIT out of the vending machines...so now, any soda consumption (any at all) will be relegated to movie viewings and even that is suspect. I'm trying to get away from processed foods as much as possible, especially those with HFCS cause it makes me feel like crap.

[Fred]

Has anyone tried a raw diet? Lots of work, but good results.

[SlickWilly440]

^
What is an all RAW Diet? No processed foods?

Hell... I go to school for a compsci degree (aprox $30,000), I get my MCSC for server 2003 (7x $150 + books), SQL DBA 2000 & 2005 (2x $180x3 + books), and multiple years experience. I'm damned good at what I do, and yet I still eat less than people in Chad? *sigh*

Oh wow, I guess I had better think really hard about changing majors then.

[Roxie]

wiki <3's raw food


Raw foodism (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Raw_diet) is a lifestyle promoting the consumption of uncooked, unprocessed, and often organic foods as a large percentage of the diet. Depending on the type of lifestyle and results desired, raw food diets may include a selectıon of raw fruits, vegetables, nuts, seeds (including sprouted whole grains), eggs, fish, meat, and unpasteurized dairy products (such as raw milk, cheese and yogurt).

A raw foodist is a person who consumes primarily raw food, or all raw food, depending on how strict the diet is. Raw foodists typically believe that the greater the percentage of raw food in the diet, the greater the health benefits. Some believe raw food highly encourages weight loss and prevents and/or heals many forms of sickness and many chronic diseases that are seen as incurable by the medical community.

[SlickWilly440]

^
So basically it's like eating food before the industrial revolution? All naturally grown, etc.....but didn't people back in those days live a short life compared to today?

[Roxie]

No...it's like NOT COOKING ANYTHING ever.

Sure they lived shorter lives, but there was MYRIAD of reasons for that. Not just a few raw carrots.

[4letterwords]

Tatsuo and I spend about... 25$ a week for the 2 of us... and we eat well, tbh... fresh meats, fish, veggies and rice... and we make curry at least once a week and eat it for 2 days because its delicious (when its not instant).

I know some people that spend about 200$ a week for just themselves... crazy

[SlickWilly440]

Well I beat all of ya'll because I spend about 3 dollars a week on Maruchan's Shrimp Flavored Ramen.....unhealthy and slowly degrading my body into nothing, but sure feels good knowing I'm spending the least on food......jk

[MNJetter]

This thread makes me sad cause I eat less food than "The Aboubakar family of Breidjing Camp".
One person eating less food than a whole family? No way! *gasp* :eyepop:


It's really interesting to see the difference in what kinds of foods people from different countries eat. Check out all the various beverages on the picture from Germany! And all those green peppers in Egypt.
I was also surprised at all the bread in the picture of Mongolia. I thought they ate more rice than bread there.

I have to admit to being a little jealous of some of the pictures I see where the food is half fruit. I miss inexpensive fruit! (damn $3 apples and $9 packs of strawberries :gloomy:)

[Radiance]

Well I beat all of ya'll because I spend about 3 dollars a week on Maruchan's Shrimp Flavored Ramen.....unhealthy and slowly degrading my body into nothing, but sure feels good knowing I'm spending the least on food......jk

One pack, every three days. :3 I consume a lot of water though.

[SlickWilly440]

One pack, every three days. :3 I consume a lot of water though.

Yeah, dude I drink lots of water and nothing else, no sodas are anything.

Check out all the various beverages on the picture from Germany!

Beverages?...I thought that was nothing but beer.

[MNJetter]

Beverages?...I thought that was nothing but beer.
There's a lot of water in there. They don't drink tap water much in Germany - most families buy big glass bottles of mineral water (next to the beer).

I see wine bottles too. It's not all beer.

[/|/@/|/@し]

This thread made me think about what I eat. I just spend $57 on groceries that will last me for at least a week and a half. I think maybe only one or two were processed foods, too. I mostly eat plain fruits, veggies, bread, and rice.


The pictures with the fruit and veggies covering everything look yummy. I can't remember the last time my parents bought fruit or veggies. (We buy our food separately)

[Jetsetlemming]

Tea bags, sugar, tap water. 80% of my diet.

[Eddie Echoplex]

Mexicans love their Coke.

Yeah we do. And yes, we do make it with actual sugar (except the Diet version and the coke they sell you at the movies/fast food joints).

Actually I was amazed to see beer in the photo of the mexican family (at the right of the cokes, I think).

[MNJetter]

So out of all these photos, which one....
1) looks the most like the types of food you eat
2) looks the most appealing to you

For me:

1) The closest is the Dong family from Beijing, China. But I probably use a different mix of sauces and spices.

2) Italy. All that fruit in the front looks so tasty!

[4letterwords]

Ukita family.

Only because Tatsuos mom sends him boxes and boxes of little Japanese ingredients and knick knacks.

Apparently she thinks I can't feed my man.

Oh, it's on...

[Duke Luke of Juke]

So out of all these photos, which one....
1) looks the most like the types of food you eat
2) looks the most appealing to you
#1, #1

The asians and third-world families' diets would bore the living christ out of me, I'm sorry to say.

[Eddie Echoplex]

So out of all these photos, which one....
1) looks the most like the types of food you eat
2) looks the most appealing to you



1) The Mexican family photo. Just slap on some beef and there's my diet.

2) The Egyptian photo. I noticed a few veggies there (not to mention the mutton) that called my attention. Mmmm, mutton.

[Pierrot le Fou]

My diet probably looks most like Egypt's.

My girlfriend and I generally go shopping once per week, about $65 US each time, and purchase the following:
- spinach
- onions (4-5)
- potatoes (4-5)
- green peppers
- mung beans
- carrots
- nappa (chinese cabbage, hakusai, whatever)
- tofu
- 10 eggs
- 400g ground beef
- 400g sausages
- 250g chicken (sasami)
- 50g ham (we get this every other week I'd guess)
- beer (for me)

Obviously we also use soy sauce, rice, milin, spices, etc. but those get purchased when we run out, assuming that her mother hasn't gone to the supermarket and bought us stuff because it's cheap.

The only processed foods I eat are snacks and shit for myself when the girlfriend is away (read: mac and cheese from CostCo).

If I quit the beer, I'd probably be super-healthy. But I'll be damned if that's going to happen.

[stsparky]

CostCo means we buy in bulk, and alot of that is dairy for the tot. I drink soymilk.

[Jetsetlemming]

1) The seconds American family.
2) The German family.

[jindojim]

So out of all these photos, which one....
1) looks the most like the types of food you eat
2) looks the most appealing to you

1) Bottom-left corner of the German family's food
2) Bottom-left corner of the German family's food

[Pierrot le Fou]

As for #2, whichever had the most beer. The food is secondary. If my girlfriend didn't subsist on veggies, I'd be even fatter than I am.

[Shuft]

I want to go live in equador. Everybody is happy and 2/3 of them have awesome hats.

[Urameshi YuSooKey]

I want to go live in equador. Everybody is happy and 2/3 of them have awesome hats.
They are born with those hats. They grow with them as they age.

[rl*united]

I just had a meal consisting of maybe 300 grams of meat potatoes and green beans all rolled up in a stew. With say one slice of bread and a slice of home-made peach cake. And I`ll be damned if I ever eat McD more than twice an year.

When I can`t be home for dinner due to work I just eat at the MA cafeteria which provides a meal of soup/salad a main course which might be anything from meatballs in sauce, chicken with rice, grilled fish to some form of a stew and a dessert plus all the bread you may want. All this costs me 75 cents USD (BG equivalent) - it`s all home cooked every day including the dessert and you usually have a choice - like there are two types of soup or two main courses or two desserts.

What I like the most about it is that nothing is half-done or frozen since you can`t put TV dinners in the 75 cents limit even if the government is funding the facility.

[MNJetter]

^
That sounds a lot like the school lunches I eat here. A lot of ALTs complain about the food at their schools, but every city does their own, so there's a lot of variety in what is served. In my area, the lunch center makes food for only about 300 students and staff members. The center is run by local residents, so there are a lot of local specialties that get featured. I have discovered my favorite Japanese foods at lunch here!

I agree on the McD's thing, too. I've been there all of three times since coming to Japan, which makes it about once a year so far. And I don't miss it. Anything they serve there, I can make myself at home, only healthier (and with better tasting bread, since I make mine fresh).

.....of course, it helps to stay away from McD's when the nearest one is a half-hour (summer) to an hour (winter) drive away. :P Yay for living out in the sticks.

[Rear Admiral Grapefruit]

Food expenditure for one week: 155.54 British Pounds or $253.15

That should be $322.

My diet is mostly meat, similar to the Mongolian family, for myself, with some pasta or rice. Also Tea with lots of milk to drink, or just lot of milk. Oh and about a billion rolo cookies. :)

[RandomPasserby]

I was also surprised at all the bread in the picture of Mongolia. I thought they ate more rice than bread there.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Geography_of_Mongolia
Seems to confirm my idea that Mongolia isn't a place to grow rice. Also they are/were nomads.

[Fred]

What is an all RAW Diet? No processed foods?

Another word for “Raw Foods” is “Live Foods”. The theory is that Raw and Living Foods are foods that contain enzymes. Enzymes are important because they assist in the digestion and absorption of food. If you eat food that is enzyme-less, your body will not get maximum utilization of the food, which will lead to toxicity in the body. The act of heating food over 116 degrees F destroys enzymes in food. So, people prepare food in ways that do not involve heating it.

I am not very consistent with eating a Raw Food diet. It takes a lot of preparation and my wife and I simply don’t make the time for it. But, when we do, we like the way we feel and the food is delicious.

[rl*united]

Enzymes are usually produced by the body in sufficient quantity - especially those that form the greater part of saliva stomach and intestinal juices. Vitamins on the other hand are not. Besides eating raw or not-thermal processed meat is more dangerous than healthy because they usually stuff farm animals with antibiotics and steroids. So sushi or meat preserved through dehydration in salt and spices (typical of Bulgaria) doesn`t make for a healthy diet. Veggies are fine though. You should get as much fresh vegetables as possible due to the fact that vitamins are destroyed by heat.

[Jetsetlemming]

Mmm, spaghetti and sausage. :]

[rl*united]

Mmm, spaghetti and sausage. :]

Or even better spaghetti with rolls of frankfurters in the sauce.

[Jetsetlemming]

Rolls? What rolls?

I also made some homemade garlic bread out of white bread, garlic, butter, and the toaster oven btw. ^_^

[MNJetter]

Seems to confirm my idea that Mongolia isn't a place to grow rice. Also they are/were nomads.
Yeah, that makes sense. And I freely admit that my assumption was in no way based off actual knowledge of Mongolia. I've heard the name. I know they're somewhere near China. That's pretty much it.

When I first came to Japan, I heard that my village used to have a pair of CIRs from Mongolia, to facilitate a cultural/information exchange program between rice farmers in both countries. That's pretty much why I assumed that people in Mongolia eat lots of rice.

[RoxFontaine]

1) Japan. Duh.
2) ITALY FOR THE MF'ING WIN!!!

[Radiance]

One person eating less food than a whole family? No way! *gasp* :eyepop:

You kinda missed my point. It wasn't that they eat more or less than I do. Its that as an educated and well trained person living in a "First world country" spend less on food and eat worse than they do, simply because other expenses (home, transportation, clothes-of which I own few and take good care of) take away the funds I should have to eat well.

[MNJetter]

This thread makes me sad cause I eat less food than "The Aboubakar family of Breidjing Camp".

You kinda missed my point. It wasn't that they eat more or less than I do.

.......really?

[SlickWilly440]

You kinda missed my point. It wasn't that they eat more or less than I do. Its that as an educated and well trained person living in a "First world country" spend less on food and eat worse than they do, simply because other expenses (home, transportation, clothes-of which I own few and take good care of) take away the funds I should have to eat well.

Well that's a good example of the fact that there are trade offs in life. Would you rather made more food and less of the other things?

That's why you need to get in with a huge group of friends, so you can mooch food off them. Or dress up like a hobo and go down to the all you can eat soup kitchen buffet.

[Shuft]

...I am not very consistent with eating a Raw Food diet. It takes a lot of preparation and my wife and I simply don’t make the time for it. But, when we do, we like the way we feel and the food is delicious.
Maybe I'm not understanding. Are you saying eating a style of food whose sole distinctive attribute is how little you prepare it takes a long time to prepare?

[Pierrot le Fou]

Maybe I'm not understanding. Are you saying eating a style of food whose sole distinctive attribute is how little you prepare it takes a long time to prepare?
That was worth a chuckle or three.

[Eddie Echoplex]

Maybe I'm not understanding. Are you saying eating a style of food whose sole distinctive attribute is how little you prepare it takes a long time to prepare?

The Devil is in the details, methinks.

[MNJetter]

Maybe I'm not understanding. Are you saying eating a style of food whose sole distinctive attribute is how little you prepare it takes a long time to prepare?
It's not how little you prepare it. It's how little you heat it. Heating food is not the only step used in preparation, and just because you're avoiding heating your food, doesn't mean that you can't work to make it delicious.

[rl*united]

That was worth a chuckle or three.

Now you see there`s a difference between raw food and food that isn`t heated. For example home made tofu (which might be boiled at some point i dunno) needs hours for the soy beans to sit in water to release their milk. Healthy food in general requires a lot of preparation. Salted goat meat (traditional :P) here takes weeks in salt to dehydrate and then a few more days of sitting between two slabs of stone to further reduce the water content - and only after that the piece of meat turns into a durable food that can be rolled in spices and preserved for an extended period of time.

It`s also really tasty, so thank you nomadic background from a thousand four hundred years ago. :D

Doc: I meant a frankfurter sliced in rolls and put in the sauce.

[Fred]

What MNJetter said...

If you are really curious, check out a cookbook.

[Hitokage]

I can honestly say... I don't know HOW to do it.

I want to eat healthier. Seriously. But how do you do it when you don't LIKE most of it ... and you can barely afford it?

I spend about 25 bucks a week on groceries... 100 dollars a month. I can't afford too much more then that.

I adore cooked veggies, only some at that, if they are in a stew or a pot pie.. but never alone. I love a lot of raw stuff, but its so seasonal, and when in season, f*ing expensive, that it makes it hard. Like when sweet green peas are in season? I buy 3-4 pack so of them to eat during the week.

I tend to have make stuff in bulk, so I can eat it for lunch the next day.

I adore rice, and eat a LOT of it. I do things like... bake some fish, shred it up into rice, and eat that...

But on the other hand, I can eat a lot of meat CHEAP. My family owns a farm, so we get a lot of beef and pork - all fresh-frozen from the butcher.

I hate most veggies in general. Yea, I know. I seriously don't like the way they taste. I like to eat salad... but then I tend to get sick of it within two weeks or so. I WANT to eat more fruit - but its so expensive that more then a couple of apples tends to go out of my budget.

I adore soups - probably half my problem. I can make a dozen kinds... stews, chowders, italian wedding soup, and my very infamous 'tomato sauce soup'.

[Pierrot le Fou]

Learn to like veggies then. You do realize that if you eat something, you tend to get used to the taste, right?

I despised the taste of coffee as a child, then could only tolerate it with much cream and sugar as a young adult, but now devour it black and can't fathom putting anything in it.

[Hitokage]

...o.O

Ew. Forcing myself to eat stuff I find seriously disgusting would turn me OFF of that food forever.

Mom always forced me to eat ham.

Hate ham now. >.>

[Micah the Great]

I hated the taste of beer at first, but then i became a man.

[Digital Masta]

I hated the taste of beer at first, but then i became a man.

I hated beer until Japan. Now I just hate cheap (read: all college beer) beer.

[rl*united]

I hated beer until Japan. Now I just hate cheap (read: all college beer) beer.

I didn`t like beer until I was 16. Then I learned to love it.

[akitaka]

What MNJetter said...

If you are really curious, check out a cookbook.
Hur. Heating food in exception to oven-work is roughly 1/5 of the whole process; most restaurants have prep-cooks to come in during graveyard in order to prepare food *for* cooking upon order during service hours. If your knife-skills suck, then you'll usually find that making a fruit platter will take longer than simply boiling pasta + heating up the sauce.

However, it seems to me that the households without glorified kitchens cook far more than otherwise. Once a given recipe/process becomes routine, you can usually do it in less than 15 minutes.

Rachael Ray's books come to mind since the recipes really *can't* be finished in 30 minutes by anyone who isn't an experienced cook. The prep time, alone, takes most people at least an extra 20 minutes.

[Trump]

Disparity in need? I know the Chad family didn't look like they had much food, but that was A LOT of grain. Sure, it wasn't in the form of precooked "Minute Rice" that takes up 2-3 times the space, or bread full of air, but they had a lot of food. They probably spend more time preparing it (baking bread, making soups, etc). The only thing that seemed missing from the picture was meat. They had assorted vegetables, grains, and drink. They didn't have all the crazy packaging materials from more modernized societies, and they didn't have a huge selection of fruits, vegetables, and drinks like people with access to supermarkets. It seems like they don't get a lot of variety and they probably eat the same things every week, but to say they aren't getting what they need seems a little overboard.

I think other people in this thread have mentioned that. When they are on a strict budget the meat and fruits are the first things to go. That doesn't really destroy your diet. It really just destroys your variety. People can eat healthy on less money but it just takes more work to prepare it.

[rl*united]

Disparity in need? I know the Chad family didn't look like they had much food, but that was A LOT of grain. Sure, it wasn't in the form of precooked "Minute Rice" that takes up 2-3 times the space, or bread full of air, but they had a lot of food. They probably spend more time preparing it (baking bread, making soups, etc). The only thing that seemed missing from the picture was meat. They had assorted vegetables, grains, and drink. They didn't have all the crazy packaging materials from more modernized societies, and they didn't have a huge selection of fruits, vegetables, and drinks like people with access to supermarkets. It seems like they don't get a lot of variety and they probably eat the same things every week, but to say they aren't getting what they need seems a little overboard.

I think other people in this thread have mentioned that. When they are on a strict budget the meat and fruits are the first things to go. That doesn't really destroy your diet. It really just destroys your variety. People can eat healthy on less money but it just takes more work to prepare it.


If by drink you mean water then I`ll agree with you - but assorted? They had tubes of water lined behind them and another smaller tube of water in front of them. And keep in mind that rice is for six people one of which is a baby. Sure they have enough to survive but it`s still a horrible way of life compared to anything we might take for granted.

[Roxie]

Actually, all of those families are considered "middle class"..
And the family Chad also has like two 5-gallon square-thingy-holders of liquid to the left of them.

[rl*united]

Actually, all of those families are considered "middle class"..
And the family Chad also has like two 5-gallon square-thingy-holders of liquid to the left of them.

These are all bottles of water since they`re lined up all the way behind them as well - and they couldn`t be anything else because any liquid besides honey will spoil in the heat. Middle class may be dollar thirty in Chad but that doesn`t make it any better for the rest of the world.

[Roxie]

Honey doesn't spoil! It only get more viscus.

[Urameshi YuSooKey]

Honey doesn't spoil! It only get more viscus.

It does spoil over time. Honey has naturally occuring bacteria that reproduces as the honey ages. After a while, the honey gets all white and bubbly because of the huge amount of bacteria in it. It's not safe to eat at that point. Although, that's only if it is exposed to air.

That is why most honey brands have warnings on them to not feed pure honey to infants beacuse of their weak immune systems.

[Masa the Masta]

I liked Italy because it had lots of bread. I seem to be really into bread and pasta lately, not as much meat anymore.

My veggie intake has gone up too, I'm kinda proud of myself. I can see a difference because I don't feel tired or sore throughout the day, and I run 3 miles almost daily nowadays.

[rl*united]

Honey doesn't spoil! It only get more viscus.

"besides honey" as in "honey excluded" ;)

It does spoil over time. Honey has naturally occuring bacteria that reproduces as the honey ages. After a while, the honey gets all white and bubbly because of the huge amount of bacteria in it. It's not safe to eat at that point. Although, that's only if it is exposed to air.

That is why most honey brands have warnings on them to not feed pure honey to infants beacuse of their weak immune systems.

Now for whatever reason that might be there`s the fact that honey has been discovered in tombs as old as a few hundred years - and it was only crystalized with sugar all over and when they added water it was edible after all that time. My point is the natural product may posses higher qualities than the processed stuff.

[Masa the Masta]

"besides honey" as in "honey excluded" ;)



Now for whatever reason that might be there`s the fact that honey has been discovered in tombs as old as a few hundred years - and it was only crystalized with sugar all over and when they added water it was edible after all that time. My point is the natural product may posses higher qualities than the processed stuff.

Would YOU eat mummy honey without monetary compensation?

Don't worry, I'll wait.

[rl*united]

Would YOU eat mummy honey without monetary compensation?

Don't worry, I'll wait.

I wouldn`t and you`re missing teh point. We were talking about Chad family and how the bottles couldn`t be anything else but water.

[Shuft]

honey is pretty cool

It has a few natural antibiotic properties which is why is was used for thousands of years to as a salve. It does have some dormant bacteria in it though. That is why infants shouldn't eat it. The dormant spores can get all undormantified in your digestive tract or if the honey gets diluted with enough water.


also, I'd totally eat mummified honey

[japanat]

I'd eat 'mummy honey' (and I ain't talking 'bout your granny, here). When pure honey crystalizes, all you need to do is heat it - put some in a container and set that in a larger container of boiling water. It also has the advantage of killing off most of the bacteria which grow in honey.

[Pengy737]

I find it very interesting that my family used to spend more money a week on food than any of those families. Over $400 a week. For THREE people. (My brother and sister had moved out for a long time by then). (Edit: Except for the German family, I just realized. Over $2000 a month on food, wow.)

But then again, we pretty much lived off of the most expensive, healthy food ever. Which explains why we were still all pretty small despite the large amount of money going torwards the pruchase of food.

Anyone else notice that the biggest (in members) families seem to be the ones spending the least amount of money on food? That's extremely unfortunate.

[MNJetter]

Anyone else notice that the biggest (in members) families seem to be the ones spending the least amount of money on food? That's extremely unfortunate.
Yeah, there's like, dozens of people in that family from Chad.

:confused:

[japanat]

Anyone else notice that the biggest (in members) families seem to be the ones spending the least amount of money on food? That's extremely unfortunate.Yeah, but you have to look at it in terms of percentage of their income to get the real idea. The family in Chad may be spending only $1.23/wk on food, but the median income in Chad is probably about $2.50 or $3.00/wk, spending half or more of their income on food. Plus tens of thousands of refugees in camps, who have no income and only the food they receive from NGOs and the UN.

[Black Dog]

Learn to like veggies then. You do realize that if you eat something, you tend to get used to the taste, right?

I despised the taste of coffee as a child, then could only tolerate it with much cream and sugar as a young adult, but now devour it black and can't fathom putting anything in it.


So true !!! i got used to eating Natto and actually like it now. I as the same with coffee, until I started a job I hated and used coffee to hype myself up.

If your hungry enough, you eat anything or thirsty enough you will drink urine if need be.

I spend $100 dollers on groceries a week for three people.

[Ichisan]

*Sigh* That's so depressing, looking at what the typical British family eats. It's like we're an anti-gourmet nation, a nation that actually dislikes food and resents the time spent on eating. Or is it that we're just plain lazy about cooking? I know I am (although when I cook I don't use processed crap). Are we the only country on the entire planet without anything you could properly call a cuisine? *Wrings hands*

Funny how the German family spends almost double what the British family spends - they must spend half of that on all that beer.

The poorest countries seem to eat a lot more grains, the same way most people did in the Middle Ages. I used to daydream about writing a fantasy novel about a huge planet with a tiny northern continent and a vast southern continent and about people from the high-tech northern continent going for adventures on the primitive southern continent. But it's not a fantasy.

[Roxie]

No, Ichi, that's colonialism.
Well, Ichi, while I hear that it's changing and that there is good English cuisine...the rumor (for lack of a better word, cause I've never been to England, but only had McVittie's cookies) is that English food is horrible. I've only had a brief brush with some English candy I thought was icky, but that beans on toast thing doesn't look appealing (and yes, I know there's more than that!)

To be fare though, I'm not sure what "American" cuisine really is...other than soul food and meat & potatoes! So, just ignore me.

[RandomPasserby]

To be fare though, I'm not sure what "American" cuisine really is...other than soul food and meat & potatoes! So, just ignore me.
Freedom fries, baked beans, easy cheese and donuts!

Only english food I can think of beside haggis is cheesy peas.

[4letterwords]

Don't forget spotted dick.