Resource Management - Food Provision

EATING PATTERNS

• An eating pattern can be described as where, when and how you eat.
• A traditional eating pattern would consist of three meals a day, including around three snacks a day.
• A meal is an eating occasion which usually takes place at a specific time and place.
• A snack consists of a small amount of food and drink to relieve hunger between meals.

Changing eating patterns

• In the 50/60's families sat and ate meals together nearly seven days a week, and only went out of the home for meals on special occasions.
• Today in scoiety, families eat together sometimes only once a week, and go out of the home for meals all the time.
• Meal times have now become more flexible due to changing working roles and hours.
• Snaking is a lot more common today than it used to be.
• The distinction between a meal and snack has massively blurred.
• In 2008, it was predicted that snaking will account for 44% of all meal occasions.
• People snack because:

-widely available, enjoyable, poor food prep skills, lack of time, available at social occasions, satisfy hunger, relieve boredom.

Dashboard dining

• Dashboard dining is food eating whilst in the car on the go.
• In 2005 it was found 22% of consumers ate whilst in the car.
• Increased car ownership and busier lifestyles have contributed to this.
• Garages also provide more food which is why people eat in the car.
• Also 'Drive-thru's' are now a lot more common.

Deskfast

• A lot of working people now eat breakfast at their desk instead of in the home.
• Fast food chains are massive contributers to this, due to offering cheap convinient breakfast meals.

Reasons for the changes in patterns of eating:

• More disposable income- more money to spend on convinient, easy prepare food.
• Working mothers- mothers dont have the time to spend all day cooking in the home.
• More people live alone- single person meals have massively grown over the years.
• More places to eat out- more variety of places to go and eat out with all types of food.
• Limited skill and knowledge of how to cook.
• Lack of time- ready made meals save shopping cooking and washing time.
• Perception of eating out has changed - no longer a special treat, just a way of life.

THE CHOICE OF FOOD INSIDE AND OUTSIDE THE HOME

Four categories of food that we purchase to make our meals:

• Ready to make- raw ingrediants bought by the comsumer e.g. veg, flour, butter, milk, minced meat.
• Ready prepared- 1. prepared meal components: parts of the meal which have been prepared by the manufacturer raw or ready to use e.g. fish fingers, beef burgers AND 2. part-prepared light meals: Meal that can be prepared quickly and sometimes is a snack e.g. baked beans, tinned soup.
• Ready to heat- frozen or chilled at least part cooked by the manufacturer e.g. pizza, curries, pies.
• Ready to eat- hot or cold ready for consumption straight away e.g. sandwiches, wraps,…