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The inequitable distribution of resources has long been problematic. Do governments or the privileged have any duty to ensure nourishment for all? Inspiration might come from past attempts by communities, states, or empires to meet their peoples’ needs, ranging from the organized importation of grain into the ancient Mediterranean, eventually leading to the annona, to the calamitous case of Mao Zedong’s Great Leap Forward. Between such extremes are the Enclosure Acts that upended the traditional sharing of resources: the tragedy of the commons, externalization of costs, and Malthusian theories continue to influence debates on food systems. Food support programs, whether charitable or governmental, ask us to consider what the scope of our responsibilities to our fellow humans might be on both theoretical and practical levels.
Famines, whatever their tragic causes, devastate populations. Proposers might consider the biblical story of Pharaoh’s Egypt, medieval Europe’s ergotism rotting bread, the Irish potato blight with its profound population migration, or the hunger that ravages war-torn areas even now. Proposals might investigate other ways in which fragile food systems result in acute hunger or starvation.
Hunger historically prowls in scrawny bodies and empty bowls. We welcome studies of seasonal deprivation related to the agricultural calendar, often exacerbated by cultural or religious fasts or disrupted food systems. Yet today, hunger may coexist with abundance. Among the ironies of industrialized food systems is that cheap, calorie-dense, nutrient-poor fast and ultra-processed foods often become essential for those who may lack access to well-stocked markets, the luxury of time, and functioning kitchens in which to cook. The negative health effects of over-dependence on such foods falls heavily on those with fewer resources.
Even if market access and the cooking conundrum were solved, some of our foods remain nutrient-poor. Scientists attribute certain subpar crops to impoverished soils, and organic and regenerative agricultural techniques are thought to be ways of enhancing crop quality and the nourishment we can extract from our foods: whether these methods can deliver what they promise remains a critical debate, especially for those living below the World Food Bank’s poverty line.
Another avenue for exploration might be cucina povera—simple dishes, frequently plant-forward or using disfavored ingredients, that fall outside of the traditional diet of Western affluence. We encourage explorations of the cultural and (often luscious) gastronomic qualities of these varied dishes. Literature romanticizes peasant cooking, from Hesiod to Cervantes to modern cookbooks like Eating Acorns, which idyllically promises to ‘bring humanity back to a diet that was once the basis of civilization.’ Yet bread made from ground acorns has also symbolized extreme want. Cucina povera might also embrace its opposite: the Land of Cockaigne and similar mythologies, where the poor feast effortlessly on the foods of the rich, with mountains of parmigiano and succulent sausages within arm’s reach.
Cucina povera, once stigmatized as suitable only for the lower classes, has recently been embraced by elites, whether from interest in nutritional ‘superfoods’, avoiding waste in ‘nose-to-tail’ eating, or gaining cachet through culinary cosmopolitanism. Quinoa’s popularity in the Global North, which brought both prosperity and hardship to Andean communities with many unforeseen effects, is but one example, and proposers might explore similar realignments.
Proposals might explore dumpster diving, gleaning, foraging from necessity, the repurposing of leftovers, and begging, or how contemporary forms of communication and social media might help those facing food shortages or limited funds to improve their dietary options.
Proposals might ask what is the psychological and emotional toll of poverty food? At what cost comes reliance on charity? What are the sociological and cultural dimensions of the ‘poverty meal’?
A last suggested approach asks what makes a food practice culturally valued? Do ramen ‘isolation booths’ enforce a poverty of commensality or offer respite from modern chaos? Is the Futurist Manifesto’s rejection of pasta a metaphor for perceived national weakness?
We welcome all to suggest ways of addressing these and other dimensions of Poverty Food.
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The Oxford Symposium on Food and Cookery invites anyone with an interest in food and its history to submit a paper for consideration. The Symposium maintains high standards regarding content, however has a longstanding tradition of quirky openness to all things, including seemingly non-academic topics. To learn more about the process and requirements click the button below.
