Menus for the Soul Changing Food Landscapes in Contemporary Japan

As Nancy K. Stalker (2018) points out, in recent years food in Japan has established itself as a fundamental feature of national and local identity and became one of Japan's most influential cultural brands. An intriguing example is the B-kyū gurume boom, the celebration of creative versions of typical comfort food, intertwined with the obsession for local traditions. Such processes are reflected in representations of food in media and arts: contemporary culture plays a fundamental role in shaping but also in connoting food culture with new meanings. The aim of this paper is to analyze the construction and narration of contemporary Japanese food culture in one of the most recent and successful franchises, Shin’ya Shokudō, the popular manga by Abe Yarō, which inspired the Netflix series that enjoyed unexpected international success in 2017.

Welfare assessment of cattle submitted to equestrian sporting events

The concern with the animal’s welfare has become increasingly frequent and the use of cattle in sporting events has aroused discussions about the preservation and integrity of these animals. The objective of this work was to evaluate whether the cattle participating in the team roping modality receive all support regarding the animal welfare criteria. During the 41st National Championship of the Quarter Horse Breed of Work and Conformation, aspects of animal welfare of 410 cattle that participated in the team roping were evaluated. Behavioral aspects were observed before, during and after the end of the competition, in addition to quantifying the number of runs per animal, the presence of ectoparasites, thermal comfort, food and hydration. It was possible to conclude that the environment in which the tests were carried out, the feeding conditions, the space and the thermal comfort meet the criteria of animal welfare.

The Influence of Office Employees’ Eating Behaviour Due to Stress: The Case of Universiti Malaysia Sabah Office Employees

It is common for stressful people to seek relief through eating their favourite foods or comfort foods. However, these foods can be unhealthy if taken too frequently. The study focuses on determining the university office employees’ choice of comfort foods and investigating the influence of stress on their eating behaviours. Among all of Universiti Malaysia Sabah office employees, 337 were selected through stratified sampling. Self-administered questionnaires were used to collect data. Descriptive and one-way ANOVA analysis were used. Findings showed most respondents were within medium level of stress. Based on the findings of IES, the differences on stress levels on respondents’ comfort food intake were significant (F (2, 334) =8.71, p lower than 0.05). However, respondents are found to enjoy consuming comfort foods regardless of stress levels and will choose comfort foods to satisfy hunger. This highlights the importance of diet intervention to be included as a component in stress management as to aid the prevention of diet-related diseases among the university office employees.

The Perceived Impact of COVID-19 on Comfort Food Consumption over Time: The Mediational Role of Emotional Distress

The COVID-19 pandemic has had a significant impact on populations at an economic, health, and on an interpersonal level, it is still unclear how it has affected health-risk behaviors, such as comfort food consumption over time. This study longitudinally examines the effect of the perceived impact of COVID-19 on comfort food consumption and whether this effect is mediated by emotional distress. A convenience sample of 1048 students and university staff (academic and non-academic) from two universities completed monthly online surveys during the COVID-19 pandemic across six waves (W; W1 to W6). Participants reported their perceived impact of COVID-19 (economic, interpersonal, and health), comfort food consumption, and emotional distress (DASS-21). Using structural equation models, we found an indirect longitudinal effect of the perceived impact of COVID-19 (W1) on comfort food consumption (W3 to W6) through increased emotional distress (W2). The perceived negative impact of COVID-19 on comfort food consumption was fully mediated by the emotional distress during the first waves (W3 and W4), ending in a partial mediation in the last waves (W5 and W6). These findings contribute to disentangling the mechanisms by which the perceived impact of COVID-19 affects comfort food consumption over time, and highlight the role of emotional distress. Future interventions should address comfort food consumption by focusing on handling emotional distress during a crisis.

Buddhist Values for Creating Mindful Markets

The ultimate goal of Buddhist life is to reach enlightenment and put an end to suffering. From this perspective, the goal of human life can be defined as inner development – that is, ethical and spiritual growth that requires only a minimum level of material comfort (food, clothes, shelter, education, and medicine). This paper introduces principles and guidelines for individual behavior and business organizations derived from the Buddhist worldview. The paper argues that the realization of Buddhist values is needed for creating mindful markets in which mindful consumption and mindful entrepreneurship are mutually reinforcing. Mindful consumption can be defined as conscious consumption that is (i) wise (it supports the genuine well-being of individuals), (ii) non-violent (does not involve hurting other sentient beings), and (iii) compassionate (it helps others to satisfy their needs). Mindful entrepreneurship involves the application of Buddhist values and virtues in business activities, including production and trade.

O CONCEITO “COMFORT FOOD” APLICADO A CIÊNCIA E TECNOLOGIA DE ALIMENTOS

O conceito Comfort Food configura-se como um meio de incentivo para um retorno pela busca de produtos mais naturais, tradicionais e regionais e que lhe exalte o prazer de uma boa refeição e os sentimentos que os proporcionam. A tentativa de inserção tecnológica ao produzir alimentos por processamentos de identidade regional enraizada possui estreito entendimento com o conceito Comfort Food. Tal conceito busca a valorização artesanal na produção alimentícia, uma vez que além de uma necessidade biológica, alimentar-se funciona como suporte emocional e símbolo cultural. Neste sentido, objetivou-se com a presente pesquisa, realizar uma revisão bibliográfica com o objetivo de mapear a visão científica a cerca do conceito comfort food na tentativa de sugerir a utilização de métodos sensoriais aplicados em pesquisas em Ciência e Tecnologia de Alimentos, para definir e quantificar tais sensações sentidas pelos julgadores ao ingerir o produto em questão. A partir das contribuições aqui estudadas, têm-se que o teste sensorial perfil livre, é um teste possível para se analisar as percepções que o alimento dito como comfort food pode trazer para quem os consome, pois durante o teste os julgadores podem elaborar suas próprias terminologias expressando quais sentimentos e lembranças são sentidas durante o seu consumo, e assim poder quantificar numericamente essas percepções, sendo possível revelar em números as opiniões e informações. Logo, as memórias gustativas são capazes de montar um quebra cabeça acerca do que somos e de onde viemos, sendo possível acessá-las diante de uma simples degustação. Contudo, os pesquisadores poderão estimar numericamente, o quanto essas sensações sensoriais são intensas, marcantes e tipicamente confortáveis.