A Taste of Europe – why do we eat like this?

Food production is, and has always been, a basic fundamental of all human societies. Past and present, it has been a source of joy and struggle, hopes and threats connected to ideals and realities. In modern European society food production and consumption have become closely linked to existential, ethical and health questions. Issues of climate change, environmental development, sustainability, ‘natural’ food, animal breeding, gene manipulation and inequalities on a national, European and global level, are often in focus in public debate about food. These issues are also of increasing importance to all European citizens in their everyday life and consumption.
The project A Taste of Europe involves nine museums across Europe, in Sweden, Finland, Scotland, Hungary, Estonia, Slovenia, Denmark, Czech Republic and Portugal. The project is funded by the EU Culture Programme and is coordinated by the Museum of Work in Sweden. The aim is to produce an exhibition about European food production and consumption that sheds lights on the question – why do we eat like we do?
By highlighting national differences and similarities, changes over time, climate and environmental issues, the aim with the project is to stimulate intercultural dialogue about food, heritage, environment, production and everyday consumption. The target group of this project is young Europeans, which is indeed a challenge. One central task for the project is therefore to develop educational activities suitable for young people, closely connected to the exhibition production.

Nine stories together
Each museum focuses on one food product, its production and consumption, that is of special national importance for their country. The museums have chosen the following products:
Honey: Slovenia; Milk: Sweden; Wheat: Hungary; Pork: Denmark; Beer: Czech Republic; Potato: Estonia;  Bread: Finland; Fish: Scotland; Olive oil: Portugal
Each museum tells their national story by using their chosen product as point of departure. These nine national stories based on historical material, photo documentation and interviews with people employed in the food sector and with consumers, as well as economic statistics and information of environmental effects, are put together in a joint exhibition by the coordinating museum in Sweden.
When forming their national stories all museums use shared questions that highlight:
• Historical change: Modernized/traditional production and consumption
• Gender and power aspects of production and consumption
• National importance of the products from economical, social and cultural perspectives, historically and in contemporary society
• Environmental aspects such as pollution, gene manipulation and impact on the landscape

One exhibition with nine variations
The exhibition area will be 120 m², consisting of two parts:
1) an overarching story sketching an overall picture of the agricultural development in Europe in terms of modernisation, industrialisation and globalisation. The overarching story outlines overall trends in Europe and highlight differences and unexpected similarities between the countries. The national stories from each country illustrates examples within this overarching framework. This part of the exhibition is built in Sweden and will is shown in all museums.
2) a local part (app. 20 m², produced and shown in the different museums). The exhibition also contains an extended story of the national production focused by each museum. In this part of the exhibition each country uses objects, films and other material, to further illustrate their national stories. The overarching story is produced in nine copies and is shown at the same time in all the participating museums. The joint launch took place on 26 January 2011 (just in Technical Museum of Slovenia the opening will be on 1st March 2011) and the exhibition will then be shown during the spring and summer.

Here you can click on short presentation of local parts (just the topsic about honey will be presented in Slovenia):

Young Europeans–how do we reach them?
In order to reach young people the project develops educational activities, interactive elements and ways to encourage dialogue between pupils in the different countries. We want to encourage young people to contribute to the exhibition. One way is to invite them to take photos of their typical eating situations and to create a gallery of those photographs in the exhibition. The photo gallery is develop along with the ongoing exhibition. The photos illustrate differences and similarities between the countries, as well as stimulate reflections upon our eating habits and choices.

 

What are the results of the project?
By raising questions about our food consumption and food production the project deals with urgent questions highly relevant to contemporary European everyday life and identity. The project will contribute to a deeper understanding of the factors influencing our food production and consumption on individual and societal levels. It will also increase the understanding of national similarities and differences. By illuminating these questions in cultural forms and in continuous dialogue with partners – researchers, cultural workers, societal organisations and the public – we hope to develop creative ways to present these issues from unexpected angles and perspectives. On a long term basis we hope that the highlighting of European consumers’ choices and attitudes connected to food will contribute to more conscious and environmentally-friendly ways of producing and consuming. One of the most important and immediate results of the project is the establishment of the international networks and the valuable collaboration between the European museums and schools. We hope this project will result in further cooperation between our museums, and between the school-classes that have established contact during this project.
The project is supported by the Culture Programme of the European Union, the Nordic Culture Fund,  the Swedish-Finnish Cultural Foundation and the Swedish Research Council Forms.
For more information about the project please visit www.atasteofeurope.eu or contact project
coordinator.
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Sofia Seifarth
PhD, Head of Research, Project Coordinator of
A Taste of Europe
The Museum of Work, Sweden
sofia.seifarth@arbetetsmuseum.se

 

Read the final evaluation of the project

This project has been funded with support from the European Commission. This website reflects the views only of the author, and the Commission cannot be held responsible for any use which may be made of the information contained therein.