Tag: food studies

Web Exclusives #4: “It Wasn’t Tokyo, But It Would Do”

Gastronomica

*For our recently published special issue, “Food in the Time of COVID-19”, we received more submissions than we could accommodate in the print version of the issue, so the following article forms part of a series of submissions which will be published as Web Exclusives which speak to the theme of Gastronomica 20.3.

By Dana Jennings Jelter

March 31, 2020: San Francisco, CA

Last year, we ate the freshest sashimi in Tokyo.

This year, we argued over how long we should scorch the pizza box.

We’re not food snobs. OK, he’s not a food snob. I get a little snobby, but only if it’s on one of three special occasions when we allow ourselves to have an “elevated dining experience.” He hates when I say elevated. Maybe I am a food snob.

Our anniversary has always been a time to splurge, a day to do something memorable and outside our comfort zone. For me, it usually involves food.

Twelve months ago, it meant crossing my dream foodie vacation off our bucket list. During COVID-19, it meant ordering take-out.

I dug through my box of sculpting supplies for a wrinkled pair of plastic gloves I’d normally use while molding toxic clay. Now, I’d use them to swipe my credit card.

I raised the box of gloves in an offering to my partner who shook his head. He opted for stretching the sleeves of his waffle-print thermal down over his fingers as he turned the metal knob of our outermost apartment door. We pulled our masks over our heads and down our faces. A familiar uniform, we actually felt lucky to have respirators left over from last year’s wildfires.

Lucky, for two devastating events within a year. An earthquake would really complete the trifecta, we joked darkly.

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Web Exclusive #3: “Independent Grocers, Vulnerable Residents, and Community Coalitions: We’re All Essential!”

Gastronomica

*For our recently published special issue, “Food in the Time of COVID-19”, we received more submissions than we could accommodate in the print version of the issue, so the following article forms part of a series of submissions which will be published as Web Exclusives which speak to the theme of Gastronomica 20.3.

By Alex B. Hill

May 15, 2020: Detroit, Michigan

FIGURE 1. Detroit grocery landscape during COVID-19.
COURTESY OF ALEX B. HILL, DETROIT FOOD MAP INITIATIVE

Food is a human right. Food is a privilege. Many Detroiters lack both.

Sitting with community members in the sweltering and sticky basement of an Eastside church in the summer of 2012 to discuss community-grocer relations, I never would have expected our conversations would set us up to lead the city government’s comprehensive response to local food retailers during the coronavirus pandemic.

In early March 2020, the food council executive director asked how we, a local grocery workgroup, could, “help grocery stores and other critical businesses to operate more safely at this time.” Our small band of non-profit, university, and local government members convened by the local food council had now become a critical connection to the local grocers. We pivoted quickly from our regular discussions on store assessments to how and where we could find masks, gloves, and informational signage to help stores better serve their customers and protect their staff.

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Web Exclusive #2: “Finding Comfort in Food Amidst COVID-19”

Gastronomica

*For our recently published special issue, “Food in the Time of COVID-19”, we received more submissions than we could accommodate in the print version of the issue, so the following article forms part of a series of submissions which will be published as Web Exclusives which speak to the theme of Gastronomica 20.3.

By May Ting Beh

April 23, 2020: Penang, Malaysia

Amidst the tragedy of the COVID-19 pandemic, Malaysians are finding comfort in food. As I write this, Malaysia has entered its sixth week of social isolation, officially known as the Movement Control Order (MCO), which is an effort to curb the spreading of the COVID-19 pandemic. The MCO is a partial lockdown; only essential services such as health care, food, and the armed forces are still operational. People are only allowed to leave their houses, alone, for grocery runs within a ten kilometer radius from their addresses. Flouting the MCO is a punishable offense. In the Prime Minister’s speech on March 18, 2020 regarding the MCO, he advised Malaysians to only go out to buy food and other necessities only once or twice a week, or if possible, not to go out at all and rely on food deliveries (Prime Minister’s Office of Malaysia Official Website, 2020). This makes it important to plan one’s grocery list carefully when stocking up on food supplies. While there is no official policy on eating less food or using less ingredients, there has been an implicit expectation to only buy essential (food) needs, as Malaysians were told not to panic-buy. Pictures of people panic-buying and hoarding surfaced on social media at the beginning of the MCO and they were heavily criticized by viewers. In addition, standard operating procedures have been put in place for shoppers doing their grocery runs. Only a limited number of shoppers are allowed at any one time in the market or shops and they are only given a short period of time to gather their goods. Even with the latter condition, long queues are sighted every day at these places, which should discourage people from heading to the markets without the absolute need to replenish their food supplies. Due to these restrictions, it is expected that everyone will be more conscientious about the amount of food or ingredients they use to prepare their daily meals.

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Web Exclusive #1: “COVID-19 Inspires a Cooperative CSA”

Gastronomica

*For our recently published special issue, “Food in the Time of COVID-19”, we received more submissions than we could accommodate in the print version of the issue, so the following article forms part of a series of submissions which will be published as Web Exclusives which speak to the theme of Gastronomica 20.3.

By Angela Babb and Megan Betz

April 25, 2020: Bloomington, Indiana

In January 2020, the People’s Cooperative Market (PCM) formed in response to a crisis of white supremacy in the college town of Bloomington, Indiana. In 2019, vendors at the city-run farmers’ market were identified as recruiters for a white nationalist hate group, resulting in rising tension between anti-racist activists, far-right extremists, and the city government, who supported the vendor’s right to free speech and access to the market. The city sought a resolution to keep these vendors in the market, adding barricades and increased police presence. The result was a heightened sense of threatened safety, making explicit the long-standing sense of othering experienced by marginalized populations attending the market (Wu 2019). When the city voted in January to continue running the market, and again included these self-described Identitarians as vendors, a group of 15 women, approximately half of whom were Black, Indigenous, or people of color (BIPOC), convened to develop a safe and inclusive alternative market.

Five farmers, four activists, three food business owners, and three scholars came together to form what is now called the People’s Cooperative Market. Organized around the need for a safe and inclusive market for local food, we started a cooperative and gathered weekly to develop our vision, mission, and goals. We articulated values to define our cooperative market, centering on equitable access to locally grown food, restorative justice and anti-racist practice, collective values shared by our vendors and partners, and meaningful collaboration (People’s Cooperative Market 2020).

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Podcast: COVID-19 Dispatches #4

Gastronomica

For the fourth episode of our podcast series, produced in collaboration with “Meant to be Eaten” on Heritage Radio Network and dedicated to dispatches from the food world in reaction to the first months of the pandemic (the focus of recently published 20.3 issue), Amanda Blum joins guest host (and issue editor) Bob Valgenti to talk about her piece, “I Miss the Grocery Store the Most”, in which she describes the missed pleasures of grocery shopping, and whether Instacart or Amazon can make up for the human connections of brick-and-mortar stores.

For 30% off single print-issues of “Food in the Time of COVID-19”, use promo code GASTROAUG2020 at checkout.