Practicing Food Studies

An introduction to the burgeoning field of food studies

Popular and intellectual interest in food is on the rise. The breadth of concerns surrounding food ranges from animal welfare and climate change’s impact on food production to debates on the healthfulness of carbohydrates and fats, and fair compensation for restaurant and farm workers. Not only is there an expanding conversation about the ways in which we produce and consume our food, but there is growing attention being placed on the myriad ways in which food expresses and shapes shifting identities.

Practicing Food Studies details the turn of the twenty-first century development and flourishing of food studies as a multidisciplinary field, focusing on its establishment at New York University. Food studies scholars have come from various fields such as history, sociology, economics, political science, nutrition, or public policy, but often felt limited by the conventions of their traditional discipline. Many gravitated to food studies to be able to describe and critically examine their specific areas of interest beyond the borders of academic disciplines. This volume explores the history of knowledge in which NYU Food Studies emerged, providing the opportunity to reflect on how academic fields are created and evolve as a response to institutional constraints and opportunities, the landscape of ideas, social movements, and public conversations.

Practicing Food Studies is a compelling collection of essays compiling the research, ideas, and experiences of faculty members and graduates of the NYU Food Studies program—mapping the paths for intellectual and social engagement with food systems and its most urgent issues.