Search

The Migrant Suitcase is a metaphor to understand how social remittances are taken, brought back and transformed. Migrants bring with them different cultural norms, food and eating practices. In this paper I review the concept of social remittances in light of material culture, food and eating practices and examine the linkages between food, belonging, commensality and care and then provide empirical examples from the suitcases of Indian migrants. This paper is based on 30 in-depth interviews conducted among Indian migrants living in The Netherlands. The main themes from the data included food from home, cooking practices, food sharing and family relationships. Migrants' sense of belonging was intrinsically related to the food they brought from home and the memories it generates. The practices of cooking and sensorial experiences surrounding them demonstrate the place and home making processes. Commensality with co-ethnics led to a sense of community and stronger community bonds. Commensality with other non-Indian groups was perceived to be problematic. The exchanges of food, eating practices, and care create a sense of 'co-presence' in lives migrants and their transnational families. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study provides insight into differences and similarities in the mindset and motivation of four dietary groups (young self-declared vegetarians, low, medium and high meat-eaters) to support the development of strategies for a general transition to a less meat-based diet. The paper highlights the value of the identity concept for our understanding of both vegetarians and meat eaters. The analysis involves a comparison of the four dietary groups focusing on the strength and the profile of their food-related motivation and their reasons for and against frequent meat eating. To check for the generalizability of the results, the analyses were performed in two samples of adults (aged 18-35) in the Netherlands (native Dutch, n = 357, and second generation Chinese Dutch, n = 350). In both samples, the vegetarians had the same level of food-related motivation as the other groups, but a different motivational profile and distinctive, taste- and animal-welfare related reasons to justify their abstinence from eating meat. The low and medium meat-eaters often considered health a reason to eat meat as well as to moderate meat eating, plus they liked to vary their meals. In these aspects they were different from both the vegetarians and the high meat-eaters. The findings are relevant for (non) governmental organizations that aim to influence dietary choices, as well as for businesses that operate in the market of meat substitutes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]