CULINARY STRATEGIES AND PRACTICES DURING THE PANDEMIC: WAYS OF COPING WITH UNCERTAINTY Cover Image

KULINARNE STRATEGIE I PRAKTYKI CZASU PANDEMII —SPOSOBY RADZENIA SOBIE Z NIEPEWNOŚCIĄ
CULINARY STRATEGIES AND PRACTICES DURING THE PANDEMIC: WAYS OF COPING WITH UNCERTAINTY

Author(s): Agnieszka Maj
Subject(s): Behaviorism, Health and medicine and law
Published by: Instytut Studiów Politycznych PAN
Keywords: pandemic; COVID-19; habits; food supply; shopping; groceries; minimising risk; Poland;

Summary/Abstract: The author describes how the pandemic impacted the ways of obtaining food provisions and culinary practices of 27 in-depth interview respondents. The study was conducted in May 2021 in Poland, using a structured qualitative interview, with the purposive respondent sample selected using the snowball method. The notion of habit was used in the analysis of the material collected, and the findings were compared to research studies on similar topics available around the world. It was found that the respondents’ habits had changed regarding, among other things, the types of products purchased as well as the places and times of shopping. The threat of the virus prompted customers to take precautions when shopping (such as wearing a mask, keeping a distance, or disinfection). Although the respondents’ culinary habits did not change, new habits appeared — such as baking bread at home. One could argue that a pandemic situation causes a sense of uncertainty resulting from the collapse of the set of hitherto applied routine practices enabling the fulfilment of basic needs, such as obtaining food provisions and socialising requirements.

  • Issue Year: 67/2023
  • Issue No: 2
  • Page Range: 81-103
  • Page Count: 23
  • Language: Polish